The mission of the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative is to help foster entrepreneurial environment in rural Missouri.
The REI has three desired outcomes:
- Strengthen Rural America through entrepreneurship.
- Support learning that enables Rural America to build a stronger and more supportive environment for entrepreneurship.
- Create and support a national learning community around rural entrepreneurship.
Chair: Mary Simon Leuci
University of Missouri – Community Development Extension
Tele: 573.884.9034
Email: leucim@missouri.edu
Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook
- To view the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook click HERE.
The Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook is viewable using Adobe Reader. Click HERE to download Adobe Reader software.
- To take the community assessment survey, click HERE.
- To order a copy of the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook, click HERE.
Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative
In 1999, the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative (REI) was created by a partnership to support locally driven research on the topic of rural entrepreneurship. Partners in this effort include the Kauffman Foundation, Rural Policy Research Institute, Partners for Rural America, Inc., National Rural Development Partnership and the Nebraska Community Foundation, Inc. The Missouri Rural Development Partners (MRDP) coordinated the Missouri partnership along with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Missouri Department of Economic Development, University of Missouri Extension and the Community Policy Analysis Center (CPAC).
The initial research report was published in August 2003 (Missouri Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative. Vickie Rightmyre, University of Missouri – Community Policy Analysis Center). The report identifies the environmental factors that influence rural entrepreneurship and how communities can measure the “health” of their entrepreneurship climate. Through field-testing of a survey instrument, the report analyzes how these measurements can be used to enhance entrepreneurship opportunity and what benchmarks can be applied to measure program effectiveness. This initial research and subsquent analysis is available for review on the CPAC web site HERE.
In 2004, MRDP partnered with CPAC to further the initial research by refining the survey instrument and testing it in 12 rural communities in Missouri. The Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative survey results were presented to each community in September 2004 and used to develop the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook: “Growing Entrepreneurs from the Ground Up: A Community Based Approach to Growing Your Own Business”.
The Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook is available on-line for communities throughout the country that wish to assess and enhance their entrepreneurial environment. For information on how the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Guidebook and self-assessment process might benefit your community, please contact your MU county extension center or you can contact the University of Missouri Extension by clicking HERE. Please type REI at the start of your comments or questions.