Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Completed Competitive Grant

Life in Iowa Homecoming Institute

Project ID: 2003-M02

Abstract

College students were immersed in Iowa community life for ten weeks each summer. They worked with mentors to complete internships and community service projects.

Key Question: If college students are given the opportunity to study the art of "living well in place" in the classroom as well as with the community mentors, would this affect their future relationship to Iowa and its communities?

Findings: The majority of students (approximately 68 percent) indicated that Life in Iowa made it more likely they would stay in Iowa. No student answered that their experience made it less likely. However, this statistical breakdown is tempered by qualitative responses that often included a reference to a hope and desire to remain in the state, but also an expectation that they would not be able to find well-paying jobs in their areas of study.

Lead investigator: Nancy Bevin, ISU Philosophy and Religious Studies, et al

Year of grant completion: 2007

This competitive grant project was part of the Leopold Center's Marketing Initiative.

Topics: Community-based food systems, Human systems, demographics and beginning farmer programs