Lydian Altman is the director of the Strategic Public Leadership Initiative at the School of Government. Have you made your resolutions for the New Year yet?  ‘Tis the season to be thinking ahead to next year and beyond! Whether you are an elected official or the director of a community or economic … Read more

Kelley O’Brien is the Director of the North Carolina Civic Education Consortium, a program of the School of Government and one of the five North Carolina Civic Health Index partner organizations. This is a second in a series of blog posts (click here for first post) about the 2010 North Carolina Civ … Read more

Sejal Zota is the School of Government Immigration Law Specialist. This is the third and last installment in a series of posts discussing whether immigrant populations may legally participate in community development programs. In my last post, I discussed whether these types of programs qualify as r … Read more

Eileen Youens is a School of Government faculty member. This is the final post in a series on local preference policies.  (Earlier posts can be found here, here, here, here, and here.)  Once again, we find ourselves listening in on the Emerald City Council meeting where the Council is discussing loc … Read more

Eileen Youens is a School of Government faculty member. This is the fifth installment in a series of posts discussing the efforts of the City Council of Emerald City, North Carolina, to support its local businesses by adopting a local preference policy.  (You can find the earlier installments here, … Read more

Kelley O’Brien is the Director of the North Carolina Civic Education Consortium, a program of the School of Government and one of the five North Carolina Civic Health Index partner organizations. Our communities depend on civic capital. When residents vote in local elections, volunteer to assist tho … Read more

Eileen Youens is a School of Government faculty member. This is the fourth installment of a series of posts discussing the efforts of the City Council of Emerald City, North Carolina, to support its local businesses by adopting a local preference policy.  (You can find the earlier installments here, … Read more

Sejal Zota is the School of Government Immigration Law Specialist. In my last post, I provided background information on how the federal welfare law may restrict immigrant participation in community development programs. In this post, I will focus on the following questions: Do community development … Read more

Like many rural North Carolina counties, Lenoir County has both a shortage of employers able to pay middle-class wages and a shortage of employees eligible for such jobs. To help meet workforce development goals, inform the county’s efforts to retain and attract employers, and improve its workforce … Read more

Sejal Zota is the School of Government Immigration Law Specialist. Can community development organizations provide down payment assistance to immigrant populations? Can they provide housing rehabilitation assistance? Can they extend water and sewer services? In recent weeks, we have been asked wheth … Read more