Date:  October 6, 2011
Time:  10:00am – 12:00pm
Location:  Boston LISC  Third Floor Conference Room (95 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116)
Instructor: Ezra Glenn, MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning

The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) now provides a wealth of census data on demographics, housing, jobs, transportation, and other topics at the level of individual census tracts — perfect for CDCs and neighborhood planning projects. Better yet, unlike the old “long-form” census you grew up with, the ACS will be updated every year: finally, we have the ability to use current census data at the neighborhood scale, and we don’t need to wait 10 years for new numbers!

But there’s a catch: the ACS requires some new ways of thinking about how we use numbers and how we deal with uncertainty and change. This hands-on session drew on real-world examples to help participants learn how to get and use ACS data to make sense of their own communities.

Date:  Thursday, February 10, 2011
Time:  3:00pm – 4:30pm
Location:  Nixon Peabody (100 Summer St., 25th Floor)

This full day introductory workshop will bring together professional planners and community development practitioners to discover ways that these two fields can share expertise and values to create and sustain healthy, vibrant and prosperous neighborhoods and communities.  Participants will be able to develop essential community planning skills through expert instruction, peer learning, case studies, and mock charrettes in order to successfully initiate and maintain local planning efforts within their respective organizations and demographic areas.

Specific curriculum areas of focus include:

• The Planning Process
• Making Local Government Work for You
• Putting Data into Action
• Land Use and Zoning Practices

How to Keep & Attract Businesses to Your Downtown

Date:  June 9 & 10, 2010
Time:  8:30am – 3:30pm (June 9), 9:00am – 12:30 (June 10)
Location:  Newburyport City Hall, 60 Pleasant St., Newburyport, MA, 01950

This workshop will examine the fundamental economic principles that support a strong and vibrant downtown. Peg Barringer, Finepoint Associates, will provide information and techniques on how to use these principles to strengthen existing businesses and recruit new businesses.

The second day of the workshop speakers will highlight successful implementation of these concepts.

Speakers for June 10:

Ann Lagasse, Leasing Director, Newburyport Development
Sheila Pwomey, Leasing Manager, Newburyport Development
Maria Dickinson, Economic Development Officer, City of Lowell

Registration Deadline is May 28, 2010

Register online: www.mass.gov/dhcd

The Mel King Institute for Community Building celebrated it’s 1st Anniversary on Thursday, June 24 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.  Over 150 community development practitioners for across the state came to support innovative thought and leadership within the field, discuss the current state of housing policy and affordable housing in Massachusetts, and to celebrate Institute achievements over the past year.  Thank you to all who attended for making it a memorable event.

Program Agenda

Keynote Speaker:  David Erickson of the San Francisco Federal Reserve and author of, The Housing Policy Revolution, Networks and Neighborhoods

Please join us as we Celebrate our First Anniversary and announce the new Innovation Forum!

3:00 – 5:00pm    Innovation Forum

• Keynote Address by David Erickson
• Discussion with Respondent Panel
• Innovation Forum Program Launch

5:00 – 7:00pm    Celebration & First Year Reflection

• Reception and Networking
• Recognition and Acknowledgements
• Reflections, Program Impact, and Future Goals

Become a Sponsor of The Mel King Institute for Community Building

Date:  April 28, 2010
Time:  11:00am – 4:00pm
Location:  University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (285 Old Westport Rd, North Dartmouth, MA 02747)
General Admission:  $25.00

World Class.  Within Reach

The Center for Civic Engagement at UMass Dartmouth invites you to participate in a UMass systemwide Civic Engagement Summit on April 28th.  The primary goal of the summit is to increase understanding of community assets as a means to deepen commitment to civic engagement.

Additional information and registration here

CoLab supports the development and use of knowledge from excluded communities to deepen civic engagement, improve community practice, inform policy, mobilize community assets, and generate shared wealth.

They believe that community knowledge can drive powerful innovation and can help make markets an arena for supporting social justice.

CoLab facilitates the interchange of knowledge and resources between MIT and community organizations. We engage students to be practitioners of this approach to community change and sustainability.

CoLab’s Focus:

• Democratic Engagement
• Shared Wealth Generation
• Urban Sustainability

CoLab Web Page: http://web.mit.edu/colab/index.html

Date: Friday, February 26, 2010
Time: 8:30am – 10:30am
Location: The Boston Foundation (75 Arlington Street)

On Friday, February 26th, LISC, MACDC and the Non Profit Finance Fund will be releasing the CDC Sector Financial Health Study at an event at The Boston Foundation, from 8:30 to 10:30 am. Bill Pinakiewicz from NFF will briefly present the findings of the study, followed by a panel discussion. Please join.

If you are interested in attending, please RSVP to Marilyn Sanchez ( msanchez@lisc.org ) by 2/24. If you have any questions about the event, please contact Kristin Blum (kblum@lisc.org ).

Each semester the Rappaport Institute sponsors an informal series of discussions about the people, institutions, and customs that make Greater Boston what it is. The 7-part series brings in notable figures from a variety of fields. These events are open to all, but are specifically geared towards students in Greater Boston who are just getting to know the region. For more information on the series, call 617-495-5091. All lectures are held at the John F. Kennedy School of Government campus and are free to all.

Thursday, February 11, 2010 at 1:00pm
Wrestling with Growth in Action, Massachusetts:
The Possibilities and Limits of Progressive Planning

Monday, February 22, 2010 at 5:30pm
The Geography of Innovation:
Why do clusters of Entrepreneurs Exist in Some Areas and Not in Others?

Monday, March 8, 2010 at 5:30pm
An Innovations Agenda for Massachusetts

Wednesday, March 24, 2010 at 12:00pm
Geography, Venture Capital, and Public Policy:
Can Publicly Supported Entrepreneurship Succeed?

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at 12:00pm
Tackling the Nation’s Toughest Housing Challenges:
Boston Neighborhoods

Monday, April 12, 2010 at 5:30pm
On Her Honor:
Is a New Generation of Women Mayors Changing the State’s Oldest Cities?

Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 4:00pm
Saving America’s Cities:
Ed Logue and the Struggles to Renew Urban America in the Suburban Age

Additional Lecture Information Available Here

A Roundtable Discussion for bankers and community representatives on the Community Reinvestment Act

Date:  Thursday, February 4, 2010
Time:  8:30am
Location:  Ten Post Office Square, Great Room, 2nd Floor (Boston Private Bank and Trust)

On February 4^th, the Economic Development Committee of the Massachusetts Community & Banking Council (MCBC) will host a roundtable discussion on the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), providing bankers and community representatives with an opportunity to share their views on how CRA is working and whether and to what extent proposed regulatory and legislative changes to CRA will help to encourage more small business lending in low- and moderate-income communities.

Introductory remarks will be provided by:

• DeAnna Green, Senior Community Affairs Analyst, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
• Esther Schlorholtz, Senior Vice President, Boston Private Bank & Trust Company
• Margaret Somer, Director, North Shore Regional Small Business Development Center
• Joyce Stanley, Executive Director, Dudley Square Main Streets

To allow for full discussion, attendance at the roundtable discussion will be limited.  If you would like to attend, please rsvp to Kathy Tullberg at ktullberg@mcbc.info no later than Monday, February 1, 2010.