The Carsey Forum

Issue #7, October 2006

Spotlight On

Rural Americans, Many of Whom Are Minorities, Targeted by Predatory Lenders

Predatory mortgage lending is prevalent in rural communities, with rural minorities most likely to take out high-cost loans, finds a new policy brief published by the Institute. Predatory mortgage lending can trap borrowers in a cycle of high interest payments and abusive fees and can ultimately devastate their financial futures. Subprime and Predatory Lending in Rural America: Mortgage lending practices that can trap low-income rural people benefits from the expertise of authors Theresa Singleton and Carla Dickstein and their colleagues at the Housing Assistance Council and Coastal Enterprises, Inc., respectively. Read the brief and found out how to spot a predatory mortgage loan and what states and the federal government can do to protect borrowers from falling into financial troubles at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/documents/PredLending.pdf.

More Rural Children Live in Poverty Now Than Five Years Ago

When the most recent poverty numbers were released from the Census Bureau, the good news heralded by the press was that the nationwide poverty rate had remained the same over the last five years. However, the Carsey Institute found the bad news: In forty-one states, a higher percentage of rural children live in poverty today than they did five years ago. Maine had the highest percentage point increase in child poverty between 2000 and 2005, and five states in the South and Southwest had rural child poverty rates above 30 percent in 2005. Read about our analysis of rural child poverty in the New York Times at http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40F1FF63A5A0C738FDDA10894DE404482, or go straight to the source at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/documents/rural_child_poverty_fact_sheet.pdf.

NH and VT Boast Low Unemployment, but Wage Trends are Troubling

New Hampshire and Vermont have a lot to be proud about in regards to participation in the labor force and unemployment rates, but recent trends point to growing disparities in New Hampshire and wages levels below regional standards in Vermont, as well as an aging workforce. Two new Carsey issue briefs on the state of working New Hampshire and working Vermont (the latter published in collaboration with the Public Assets Institute) outline the challenges ahead for workers in the two sister states, as they cope with the loss of manufacturing and information jobs. Read analysis by Carsey policy fellow Allison Churilla on the White Mountain state at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/documents/WorkingNH_final.pdf. Greenies, go to http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/documents/WorkingVT_final.pdf.

My Region is Better than Your Region

While comparisons of one region to the other, such as average wages in New England versus in the Midwest, are useful for policymakers, community development practitioners, researchers and others, let’s just admit that it is darn fun to see how see how your region stacks up against another. Although “darn fun” wasn’t the Carsey Institute’s main objective for developing the new Regional Indicators Site, this site, which allows for quick access to socio-economic data related to population, income and poverty, employment, family and kids, and education across nine geographic regions of the nation, can be interesting to anyone. An important innovation on the site is the ability to make easy comparisons between cities, suburban, and rural areas. Check it out at http://regionalindicators.unh.edu and let us know what you think.

Coming Soon!

Tomorrow! Carsey Seminar Addresses the 3Es of Community Development

More and more, community development practitioners are realizing the power and potential of integrating the 3Es – equity, economics, and environmental protection – in their work. Coastal Enterprises, Inc. in Maine is one organization that is successfully building coastal development strategies based on this integration, and Stephen Cole from CEI will share some of their secrets for success at the October 26 Brown Bag Seminar at the UNH Memorial Union Building Room 332 from 12:40 – 2pm. Chris Colocousis, Ph.D. candidate in sociology and Carsey research assistant, will also discuss his work with the Northern Forest Center to construct an index of regional well-being for the Northern Forest. Find out about upcoming seminars at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/seminars07.html and note our upcoming special event on November 29 with Robert Greenstein, founder of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington, D.C. Register for the November event by contacting amy.seif@unh.edu.

New Immigrants, Mostly Hispanic, Settling in Rural America

The old picture of immigration – families arriving by boat to Ellis Island and settling in New York and other cities that promised employment and reconnection with others of similar ethnic origin – is changing to reflect a new reality in which immigrants are moving beyond traditional cities of destination. In the Institute’s next report in its series on rural America, New Immigrant Settlements in Rural America: Problems, Prospects, and Policies, the author, Leif Jensen, rural sociologist at Pennsylvania State University, examines where recent immigrants have chosen to live and looks at the demographics of those who have settled in rural America. Among other findings, the report shows that the impact of immigration can be, and often is, more acutely felt in rural communities than big cities, even if the absolute number of newcomers is much smaller. Download the report soon at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/publications.html.

Thinking about the Upcoming Elections? Then Read This…

The last Presidential elections stirred up a number of questions regarding voting for family values and the rural vote, as the nation watched the red states claim victory by a narrow margin. The tide may be turning, but also on closer examination the nation isn’t red or blue, but more purple, according to Carsey researchers studying values, religion and voting in rural America. Michelle Dillon, UNH sociologist, and Sarah Savage, Ph.D. candidate in sociology, will present the results of their analysis of attitudes towards the hot-button issues of abortion and homosexuality in an upcoming issue brief. Focusing on a related subject, Larry Hamilton, UNH sociologist and Carsey senior fellow, will publish the results of his analysis of rural voting in the 2004 election in another publication; both will be posted by November 7 (Election Day) at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu.

Biomass Holds Promise for the Rural Economy, but Local Ownership is Key

As the push towards a bio-fueled future continues, farmers and rural citizens may be left behind unless policymakers emphasize rural development needs when creating incentives and programs to expand the industry, finds an upcoming policy brief from the Carsey Institute. Biofueling Rural Development: Making the Case for Linking Biofuel Production to Rural Revitalization by Jim Kleinshmit of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy is a primer on the biomass industry and its potential for rural development that also includes recommendations for federal and state policy-making. The brief will be hitting the presses soon, download the brief within weeks at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu.

24 Nonprofit Leaders Awarded Policy Leadership Fellowships

The Carsey Institute has selected 24 nonprofit leaders from Northern New England to swim through shark-infested waters, eat live slugs, and hike across the burning sands of the desert only to make them vote in the end on one person who will receive the big prize. Now that we have your attention, actually, this is no reality show. But the hard work these people do every day to improve opportunities for Vermonters, New Hampshire-ites, and Mainers is true reality, and the prize is the strengthened capacity of the region to advance policies for families and communities through greater in-state and cross-state collaboration. The fellows will participate in strategic workshops, beginning with a 3-day residential workshop at UNH in November, and they receive awards of $1000 that will support the continuation of the work of these leaders in their home states. To see a list of fellowship recipients and learn more about the Policy Leadership Initiative, click on http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2006/september/bp_092106lead.cfm?type=n.

Who Are New Hampshire’s Low Income Families?

While New Hampshire has one of the lowest poverty rates in the nation, 14% of families in the state are surviving on low income earnings. An upcoming issue brief by Carsey policy fellow Allison Churilla examines the family structure of these 48,279 families and looks at how they are impacted by trends in housing and utilities costs, employment, and public assistance. Is the situation in New Hampshire worsening for these families and their children? Visit http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/publications.html in late November to find out.

Mother and Son Address the Gender Earnings Gap

As Carsey’s low income families brief nears completion, on November 1 in the UNH Memorial Union Building Room 302 from 12 – 1:30 pm, our new Women & Work Colloquium Series will feature presentations on the economic status of working women. Ross Gittell, James R. Carter Professor of Business and Economics and Allison Churilla, author of our low income families brief, will present the situation for working women in New Hampshire. Marilyn Gittell (yes, Ross’s mother) and Bill McKinney from the Howard Samuels Center at the CUNY Graduate Center will discuss comparisons with working women in their state of New York. Find out more about the Women & Work Colloquium by clicking on http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/women_work.html.

Other News

Research on the North Country Moves into High Gear

With the establishment of the Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund at the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, the Institute is gearing up to conduct long-term research to help the foundation to best serve the people in the North Country who are most in need. The Tillotson Fund’s overall grant program goals include addressing gaps in services to meet North Country community needs and strengthening the ability of communities and individuals to impact public policy. Mil Duncan, director of Carsey, serves as an advisor to the Tillotson Fund, and in this advisory capacity the Institute will conduct a longitudinal study of North Country youth, a panel study of the migration patterns of the region’s residents, and continue to analyze socioeconomic indicators of change in the region, establishing benchmarks against which we can measure progress. Read about the new Tillotson Fund at NHCF’s website: http://www.nhcf.org/page16898.cfm

Nonprofit Leaders, Kids, and the Region Benefit from Generous Gifts

They say that good things always come in groups of three. The Institute celebrates three new awards from the Endowment for Health to support advancing regional nonprofit leadership and to analyze health insurance programs for children. 1. The Endowment joins other funders from Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire along with Jane’s Trust in supporting our Policy Leadership Initiative to strengthen the collective capacity of Northern New England to advance policies for social good. 2. In addition, the Endowment has awarded a planning grant for a new program, Emerging Leaders from the Edge, which will identify the capacity of leadership in rural, lower income communities and pilot test a capacity-building and support structure that meets the needs of a selected group of leaders from these communities. 3. Our evaluation program also benefits from the generosity of the Endowment: A new grant supports analysis of the NH Healthy Kids program. New Hampshire has one of the lowest rates of uninsured children in the nation, and many think this success is in part due to the work and structure of NHHK. Carsey researchers will examine the program and produce a policy brief outlining their findings and policy implications for NH and other states.

Snapshots of Migration and Population in the Rural South

When you’re hungry for knowledge, yet have so little time to soak it all in, Carsey’s Snapshots on Social Change (previously called “Graphical Views”) by Senior Fellow Larry Hamilton serve up a big meal in just a few bites. This month, learn about the growing Hispanic population in the rural South and out-migration by African Americans in a few colorful and easy-to-understand graphs by going to http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/documents/Snapshots_Southmigration.pdf. Carsey’s new Perspectives web page offers links to the monthly Snapshots on Social Change and to rotating interviews with practitioners and researchers who study families and communities. Eat as much as you’d like at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/perspectives.html.

This College Student doesn’t have to “Wire” Home for Money

It’s hip, it’s happening, and the Carsey Partnership for Effective Nonprofits Fellow is on the scene. Maureen Reilly, UNH senior and this year’s PEN fellow, begins a new partnership with The Wire, a free arts and entertainment (and more) paper for the seacoast region. The Wire isn’t just the hippest paper around, it also has the widest circulation of all seacoast papers – from up to Ogunquit, ME, down to Newburyport, MA. PEN fellows are required to write newspaper articles that focus on the work of nonprofits in the seacoast region; former fellows have worked with the Portsmouth Herald. The fellowship award provides a stipend. For more information, go to http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/journalism.html

New Projects

Who’s Taking Care of our Parents and Grandparents?

We all get older. And demographic trends show that rural areas and entire regions, like New England, are getting older along with us. Families and communities in these places will likely rely more and more on direct caregivers, who are often women earning a low wage. A new brief by Carsey’s Kristin Smith and UNH Professor Reagan Baughman will look at economic and family characteristics of women in direct caregiving occupations and compare these women to female workers in other low wage occupations. The brief will be posted to the Carsey Institute’s website at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu by December.

Growing the American Dream for New Americans

The best farmers don’t just stick seeds in the ground and wait for the plants to grow; they test the soil, applying the ingredients most necessary for success, and learn from the experience of years about the best plants to grow in their climate zone. The process of helping recent immigrants to develop farm enterprises and acquire farm ownership can be a lot like farming itself. The Carsey Institute is helping Coastal Enterprises, Inc. to learn from their experiences assisting new citizens to become Maine farmers by conducting an evaluation of CEI’s New American Sustainable Agriculture Project. Recently settled African refugee farmers, Latino farm workers, and other immigrants living in the Portland, ME area will reap the results of this harvest. Read more about Carsey’s nonprofit evaluation program at http://www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu/evaluation.html.

New Staff

Out of the Pot and Into the Fire: Nena Stracuzzi Joins Carsey

Nena Stracuzzi began her career at the University of New Hampshire in September 1996 when she was seven months pregnant and had just driven across the country from California with her husband and two-year-old daughter to attend a demanding graduate program. From that moment on, it was clear that she was to become an expert in family and parenting issues and issues of women and work. Immediately following her graduation from the Ph.D. program in sociology – moving from the pot into the fire - she stepped into the open arms of the Carsey Institute where she is working as a post-doc research fellow. Just to keep her jumping, the Carsey Institute has asked Nena to be our resident GIS expert as well as we develop our mapping capacities, while also working on key Carsey family policy publications. Email Nena at nena.stracuzzi@unh.edu.

Spotlight on Carsey Affiliate

Child Study and Development Center

While an image of young children actively and joyfully engaged in learning is most often associated with the UNH Child Study and Development Center ( CSDC), the center is also fertile grounds for research. The center – which has a national reputation for its inquiry-based approach to early education – provides a site and source of participants for faculty and student researchers studying everything from children’s understanding of conflict to the effect of landmark features on children’s spatial skills. CSDC Executive Director John Nimmo reports that the center is currently engaged in an internal research project regarding the ways in which young children view and create relationships with non-caregiver adults in their community. In November, teachers from the center will collaborate with faculty from the laboratory schools at UVM and Tufts to present initial findings at the National Association for the Education of Young Children annual conference. Also ongoing is the center’s “Growing a Green Generation Project” examining the role of gardening experiences in early learning. The eight-year funded collaboration with the UNH Department of Plant Biology has led to the development of website and a curriculum set for publication in the coming year. Most recently, CSDC educators have been invited to share their experiences at a panel on nature education at Wellesley College and at the National Youth Gardening Symposium in St Louis. Visit the CSCD (children welcome!) at http://csdc.unh.edu.

The Carsey Forum is published by The Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. Inquires and requests to subscribe and unsubscribe should be addressed to Amy Seif, Forum editor, at amy.seif@unh.edu.