Southern Indiana Business Report
BLOOMINGTON — The Indiana University Center for Rural Engagement is accepting applications for the next Sustaining Hoosier Communities partnership, which will run through 2026-27.
SHC partners one rural community with IU faculty, staff and students to advance community-identified projects over one intensive year. The initiative’s mission is to improve and enrich the health, prosperity and vitality of the region.
Through an SHC partnership, communities can explore solutions to community challenges, advance stalled projects and generate material for future funding opportunities. Projects culminate in tangible deliverables, including policy and program proposals, placemaking renderings, public relations plans, funding strategies and economic development analyses.
Applications are open now through Oct. 1, 2025. While partner communities have traditionally included entire counties, applications are welcome from rural towns, cities or other communities defined in more creative ways. SHC is designed to support communities within an approximately 90-minute drive of Bloomington.
The SHC initiative focuses on community-driven projects in areas including arts and culture, economic development, health and wellness, local tourism, technology infrastructure, cultural diversity, social services, education and the environment.
Since its launch in 2017, SHC has partnered with six rural Indiana communities, including Washington, Orange, Lawrence, Greene, Dubois and Daviess counties. To date, those partnerships have advanced 141 community-identified projects with support from more than 2,400 IU students.
“Sustaining Hoosier Communities infuses the energy and innovation of IU faculty and students into locally led projects,” said Center for Rural Engagement Executive Director Denny Spinner. “It serves as a launching pad for ongoing university-community partnerships and builds connections with students as they develop their professional roots here in the Hoosier state.”
SHC is an internationally recognized program by the Educational Partnerships for Innovation in Communities-Network.
Interested community applicants are invited to attend a virtual information session on Zoom on Monday, Dec. 16, from noon to 1 p.m. The session will cover the SHC program’s benefits, eligibility criteria, timeline and how to apply. Attendees can register at events.iu.edu/rural.
Communities can learn more about the SHC initiative and submit an application at shc.indiana.edu.