Biswa Das, Nora Ladjahasan, Gary Taylor
Author: Heather Sauer | Image: Heather Sauer
ISU Extension and Outreach Community and Economic Development (CED) recently received an $80,000 grant from the US Department of Commerce (Economic Development Administration) through the Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission to undertake a study for a six-county region in northeast Iowa. The focus of the study is to learn of the barriers to and opportunities for attracting a vibrant workforce to the study region in northeast Iowa, with particular emphasis on the housing needs of the study region.
Based on the findings, the study will develop an action plan for improving workforce attraction and the housing supply in the study region. Co-PIs for the study include Biswa Das, Iowa State University assistant professor of community and regional planning and community development extension specialist; Liesl Eathington, an assistant scientist in economics; Nora Ladjahasan, an assistant scientist with the Institute for Design Research and Outreach; and Gary Taylor, an associate professor of community and regional planning and director of ISU Extension and Outreach CED.