Carol Johnson, Southern Indiana Business Report
Orange County is one of four counties selected to participate in a new initiative to help communities elevate their economic development vision.
Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs announced Tuesday that Orange County along with Cass, Fulton and Huntington counties were chosen for the Rural Empowerment and Development program.
The pilot program was created by OCRA and the Indiana Communities Institute at Ball State University.
Orange County Economic Development Partnership Executive Director Skylar Whiteman and Orange County Community Foundation Executive Director Kristina Allen submitted the application.
“Orange County is fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in the Rural Empowerment and Development program,” Allen said. “We are looking forward to community-minded collaboration within the county and the education that will be gained in this program.”
Orange County is made up of several small towns – Orleans to the north, Paoli, the county seat and French Lick and West Baden in the southwest part. Whiteman said the program will bring together residents from all corners of the county to collaborate on common issues.
“It will start with a two-day kickoff in Orange County,” Whiteman said. “We have put together a team of 40 people across different organizations that we knew were interested in bettering Orange County.”
Following the two-day training, there will be a launch pad event and Orange County will work with facilitators to identify five to 15 action projects. Expert guidance and coaching will be provided to each project team to assist with successful implementation, according to a press release.
“We’re hoping this will help bring people together to address those common issues and projects and improve collaboration across all our communities,” Whiteman said. “We’re all small towns working on a lot of the same things.”
Each participating local team will undergo a four- to six-month program tailored to their specific needs, with staggering start dates starting in January 2025.
“Continued community development is key to improving the quality of life in Indiana’s rural communities,” said Crouch, Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “The RED program will help launch these four communities to the next level of community development through collaboration and innovation.”
The RED program will open again for applications in spring 2025. For more information on the program, visit in.gov/ocra/red or reach out to the regional OCRA community liaison, which can be found at in.gov/ocra/newsroom/community-liaisons.