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A few extra thoughts on what's happening with rural leadership Read More »

When the Fischer Quints of Aberdeen turned 50 in September 2013, the event triggered memories of another multiple birth in Brown County that occurred three decades earlier. The Schense quadruplets were born on Jan. 13, 1931, at St. Luke’s Hospital in Aberdeen. Read More »

In the Glacial Lakes region in northeast South Dakota, “community” is defined as more than what lies inside the city limits signs. Read More »

As we look to the future for our rural communities, one thing is certain: What lies ahead is not going to be the same as what came before. Change is inevitable. Read More »

On the surface, the leadership situation in many rural communities is easy to describe: From city councils to festival committees to 4-H clubs, there just aren’t enough leaders. Read More »

If two heads are better than one, the result of the collaborative hopes and dreams of hundreds is nothing short of amazing. Read More »

If we look at rural leadership challenges as a supply-and-demand problem—the supply of rural leaders is not meeting the demand—then two strategies present themselves: Reduce the demand, or increase the supply. Read More »

A transition is happening right now in our workplaces and organizations: As baby boomers reach the traditional retirement age, many positions where they had worked, served and led for years are changing hands. Read More »

Watch the winds wiggle and bend grasses on an open plain. It’s a rhythmic response on the ground to moving air. This movement, this dance, has been stilled on more than 235,000 square miles of North America. Grasslands have been steadily destroyed during the past century and a half, and that destruction accelerated in recent years as industrial corn and soybean farming spread across the land. Read More »

What is a leader? Read More »