Overview of Team Proposals and Processes

Most community teams were created for the MIRA project and were comprised of people who were not well acquainted prior to MIRA. In Giles County, the communities are isolated by the natural environment and tend to see each other as rivals. The Giles MIRA team represents the first time several communities within the county have come together around a common goal. A similar situation exists in Floyd County. Floyd County has a rich tradition of mountain living and independence. The town of Floyd serves as the central meeting place for the entire county. The Floyd MIRA team was able to bring together long-standing residents, who rarely participate in community efforts, and involve them in a process that will guide the future of the county.

For the majority of the MIRA teams, one or two of the members of each team were delegated most of the organizational responsibilities and carried out most of the work involved in getting members to the workshops, writing the project proposal, and maintaining momentum. In those cases, the leaders tended to be "professional practitioners," such as community planners. Most team members have e-mail and communication took place via e-mail or through telephone conversations.

The workshop series was extremely successful in uniting the region and the community teams. Although participants were dissatisfied with the length the workshop sessions and the quality of some of the trainers, the general feeling was that "the New River Valley Cluster' came together' around the common goal of the workshop series." One participant from the Floyd team said, "The individuals from the Floyd team who participated in the workshop series were forced to cross the rickety bridges that marginally linked us and strengthened the ties in the interest of reaching a common goal." Additionally, participants gained tremendously from the content of the workshops. One participant stated, "I almost always learned at least one thing, idea, concept, or technique at the workshops that is useful and inspiring."

There is evidence that the workshop series will have an impact on other community activities. One participant stated, "I hope to take the excitement generated here to meetings on the local level." Similarly, another participant stated, "I love the information that I can share with others to make my community better-this can't get any better."

The following are suggestions that were voiced throughout the workshop series:

Due to the fact that most teams were able to recruit "new players," many team members wanted to have more training or opportunities for team building within community teams and then within the Cluster. Conduct an asset mapping o f the Cluster participants as a requirement and distribute results to all participants which could be used as a skill resource and networking tool.

Many community team members would have liked to be able to recruit local trainers.

And finally, it was suggested that a directory of the Round 1 Community Clusters could be compiled for the Round 2 MIRA Clusters as a resource to share lessons learned.

Project ideas and proposals developed at different rates among the teams. Two teams came to the first workshop with a project idea, and they used the workshop series to develop and strengthen the project. Most teams developed project ideas throughout the workshop series and by the fourth workshop had settled on an idea. One team, Floyd, specifically chose to complete all the workshops prior to choosing a project to propose. This team brainstormed project ideas and organized two community-wide meetings at which they presented their project ideas and asked all those who attended to vote on the project to propose.

The following are the projects proposed by all the Virginia Cluster teams:

Christiansburg:
To build an informed, cohesive community through education and information exchange. The project involves the creation of a community newsletter, web site, and asset database.

Pulaski:
To assist residents in learning how to use the Internet to improve their lives on a practical level through a computer learning center.

Northwest Montgomery:
To establish an inter-generational communications network using technology to teach computer skills, support education, connect the generations and preserve heritage. This will be achieved through offering adult computer education classes, outreach, oral histories and a community web page.

Riner:
To develop a virtual community center as a focal point for improving communications and relations within the community and as a vehicle to launch a cultural and telecommunications center in an existing log cabin on the Auburn district high school grounds. This virtual community center is named AVENUES (Auburn Virtual Enterprises Networking Unique Exciting Services).

Shawsville/Elliston:
To use technology to create partnerships which instill community pride, enhance community awareness, and empower citizens to help themselves and their neighbors. This will be achieved through creating a community web site and a newsletter, providing community access to a computer and linking with local media.

Radford:
To bring together citizens with government and school leaders to establish a comprehensive technology task force in order to plan, develop and implement a comprehensive technology plan.

Giles:
To provide a public information forum for the residents of Giles County by establishing a community Bulletin Board utilizing public access TV.

Floyd:
To provide a means of communication and resource of community assets through the creation of a community web site and interactive computer terminals.

Dublin:
To provide Dublin families and businesses with access to improved electronic information resources through the creation of the Dublin information Station, a six-computer workstation located in the local library.

Blacksburg:
To provide temporary transportation for job related activities to residents below the poverty level whose transportation needs are unmet. This will be achieved through the creation of a dispatch center and a community council to address local transportation needs.