Will Civic Participation and Social Equity Predict Rural Community Futures? Preliminary Case Study Findings

• In Event: Friday Roundtable Session 4:55 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Rural Community Futures: Migration and Civil Life (Table 15)

Abstract

Rural communities depend on civic participation to ensure their educational and economic futures. Using critical participatory action research, we document emergent meanings for civic participation and placemaking in a transnational, multilingual rural community. Our overarching research question is: In what ways does a civic participation program pairing newly naturalized citizens and established residents create joint investments in rural communities? The majority residents are immigrant families, newly arrived and established residents (62%) who speak languages other than English. We ask how education and community engagement can secure rural futures.

Authors

• Carolyn A. Colvin, University of Iowa

• Melissa Lehan-Mackin, University of New Mexico

• Emily Sinnwell, University of Iowa

• Fabian Oulette-Pinto, University of Iowa