Twenty-four sites have been selected for the North Dakota State University Extension Service's next Horizons community leadership program.

Horizons is an 18-month effort to help rural North Dakota communities of fewer than 5,000 residents that are struggling with poverty, shrinking populations and dwindling resources.

The sites include Anamoose, Bowdon, Cando, Cooperstown, Crosby, Dodge, Gackle, Harvey, Hazelton, Lidgerwood, Linton, Maddock, Mohall, New Town, Rocklake, Rolette, Rutland, Sheyenne, Stanley, Steele and Walhalla. Several communities have chosen to work together as one site. They are Rugby and Towner; Elgin, Carson and New Leipzig; and Watford City, Arnegard, Alexander and Keene.

The sites selected were among 50 communities eligible to apply for the program.

NDSU Extension is partnering with the St. Paul, Minn.-based Northwest Area Foundation on the Horizons program. The foundation, a nonprofit organization that is fighting poverty in an eight-state region, awarded NDSU Extension a grant for the program.

The next step is for the selected sites to work with Extension to organize study circles and a LeadershipPlenty program.

Study circles are community conversations. Groups of about 30 residents come together to discuss poverty and other community concerns. The groups develop possible solutions with help from facilitators. One hundred eighty-three people recently completed facilitator training.

LeadershipPlenty is a nine-unit program the Pew Partnership for Civic Change in Charlottesville, Va., developed. The program teaches people to become effective leaders by learning to build partnerships, manage conflict and work as a community to solve problems and create opportunities. That program will come to communities in the spring.

After completing those steps, NDSU Extension will work with the communities to tailor a Horizons program to meet their specific needs. The grant allows Extension to hire staff to help communities obtain the training, support and other resources they need to overcome issues such as out-migration of residents, particularly young people; a growing elderly population; low-paying jobs; and lack of funding to improve essential city services.

This is NDSU Extension's second Horizons program. The first program aided five North Dakota communities - Ashley, Beach, Ellendale, Mott and Regent - and Eureka, S.D.

As a result of that program, 27 communities throughout North Dakota are taking advantage of a state law that Ashley and Ellendale leaders helped convince the 2005 Legislature to pass. That law allows towns of fewer than 5,000 residents to form housing authorities and issue bonds to pay for moderate-income, as well as low-income, housing. Those communities will gain a total of 170 moderate-income housing units when construction is completed.

The program also resulted in:

• Construction of a cell phone tower near Ellendale, which improved the area’s telecommunication service
• Communities developing strategic plans for their futures
• Young people getting involved in community decision making
• More people being encouraged to become community leaders
• Communities exploring ways to help residents feel better about themselves and their towns

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