Shelley Oltmans is an Industry Specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach in the department of Community and Economic Development. In this position she also serves as the Executive Director of the Keokuk Area Chamber of Commerce. She is a proud alumna of Iowa State University, where she received a Master in Community and Regional Planning and Master of Science in Sustainable Agriculture. In her Industry Specialist position, she teaches community leadership and facilitates local and regional planning efforts with nonprofits and local governments. Her strengths are partnering with government entities and nonprofits to collaborate in providing educational and economic development opportunities. As the director of the Chamber of Commerce she is highly involved in catalyzing reinvestment in housing and the built environment. […]
Category: Community
Project Spotlight: Over 100 University of Iowa Project Examples Now Available in EPIC-N Project Library
By: Max Prestigiacomo The Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC) was launched in 2009 in the School of Urban & Regional Planning by Dr. Chuck Connerly, since then, IISC has expanded and now works with over 20 Community Partners, putting the EPIC Model into practice. Since its founding, this EPIC Model program has made a […]
Program Spotlight: Texas A&M and UW-Madison Featured on the GovLove Podcast
By: Ada Inman EPIC-Network Program Spotlight: The GovLove podcast, hosted by ELGL, featured representatives from Texas A&M and UW-Madison in separate podcast episodes this past month. In the GovLove episode highlighting UW-Madison, two guests joined the podcast to talk about the UniverCity Year partnership between the Village of Waunakee, WI, the Ho-Chunk Nation, and students […]
Read More… from Program Spotlight: Texas A&M and UW-Madison Featured on the GovLove Podcast
2021 EPIC-Network Conference a Great Success
The 2021 EPIC-Network Conference was held virtually October 5-7. The conference featured nine individual sessions highlighting EPIC-N programs, partners, and friends of the Network. The virtual, interactive event focused on updating the membership on the growth and proliferation of the EPIC Network, the trending topics affecting EPIC programs, and the resources available to tackle them. The conference proved to be a great success with individuals from 11 countries and 86 different institutions in attendance. […]
Read More… from 2021 EPIC-Network Conference a Great Success
Partnership and Project Spotlight: Indiana State University launches its inaugural partnership with the City of Sullivan using the EPIC Model
By: Marshall Curry, Ada Inman, and Max Prestigiacomo The Sustainable Cities Program at Indiana State University launched in 2020 with its inaugural partner city, the City of Sullivan. Local news stories announced the partnership to help market listening sessions hosted by the City to encourage “community members to provide input on sustainable projects within the […]
UW-Madison’s UniverCity Alliance and AGU’s Thriving Earth Exchange partner to launch a cohort of community science projects in Wisconsin
EPIC-N brings international partner to support Community Science projects. By Ada Inman Following the public announcement of their partnership, EPIC-N and the American Geophysical Union’s Thriving Earth Exchange (TEX) engaged one the EPIC Model programs, the University of Wisconsin’s UniverCity Alliance (UCA) to launch a pilot cohort of community science projects in Wisconsin. UCA, TEX, and […]
Forrest Williams connects his student experience to his local government career to develop comprehensive plan
Forrest Williams Community Development DirectorCity of Caldwell, Texasfwilliams@caldwelltx.govOffice: 979.567.3271 EXT. 107Instagram: @caldwelltexasForrest’s LinkedIn Favorite Place Davidson Creek Park is my favorite place in Caldwell, I enjoy taking my dogs on walks in the park and going on a nice run around the park and throughout town. Davidson Creek Park in a 95 acre park in […]
Amanda Torres plans with resilience in mind following her partnership with Texas A&M’s Texas Target Communities
Amanda Torres, MPA, CFM Senior City Planner,City of Corpus Christi – Planning Division, TexasAmandaT@cctexas.com Favorite Place My favorite places around Corpus Christi and Rockport are its bayfront areas. Both are iconic places loved by locals and tourists alike. Who doesn’t love a water view? How did you first learn about EPIC-N? I learned about EPIC-N […]
Environmental Justice Video Challenge for Students
Do you or your students have creative ideas on how to use data and tools to identify environmental justice issues in communities? Join the EJ Video Challenge for Students! EPA and its co-sponsors, which include EPIC-N, have launched the Environmental Justice (EJ) Video Challenge for Students to enhance communities’ capacity to address environmental inequities. Learn more about the challenge […]
Read More… from Environmental Justice Video Challenge for Students