Tawanna Black
The St . Paul-based Center is the nation ’ s first organization dedicated exclusively to creating inclusive regional economies . They do it by equipping public- and private-sector employers with the tools they need to dismantle institutional racism and build shared accountability for inclusive economic growth . The Center was established in 2017 , well before the May 2020 George Floyd incident happened .
Among its many partners in the work it does is Ramsey County , which is in the Northeast Metro . “ The Center for Economic Inclusion is our partner on the economic competitiveness and inclusion vision plan we have been working on ,” said Kari Collins , Ramsey County ’ s
Kari Collins
Director of Community & Economic Development . “ They have led the engagement strategy and they have also been a strategic advisor , helping to develop some of these recommended actions .”
While the work to make sure economic development is more equitable has been underway for some time , the George Floyd incident brought about a new sense of urgency . “ We feel particularly compelled as a result of both the murder of George Floyd and the COVID 19 crisis to build programming and initiatives that come back with programs that are intentional in terms of who we are serving , and that are grounded in racial equity ,” said Collins .
Currently being looked at very closely in Ramsey County , trends around foreclosures and forfeitures , and the intentional rebuilding of Black-owned businesses negatively impacted by both the pandemic and the uprising in the aftermath of George Floyd ’ s death .
“ As we retool future funding , we will look to how we can be strategic in serving the corridors that may have had BIPOC ( Black , Indigenous , and People of Color ) business ownership . Our goal is to retain BIPOC ownership along these corridors , and make sure they don ’ t succumb to national investors who swoop in and buy up property . We have been having lots of conversations with the City of St . Paul and various Chambers about being intentional ,” said Collins .
“ Ramsey County is putting their money where their mouth is with this particular project and it holds great progress and potential for all of Ramsey County ,” said Black “ I would echo that the city governments are just as important to this work . It will take a deep partnership and solidarity between all units of government and the private sector in order to bring it to fruition .”
Educators in the Northeast Metro are also deeply involved in the work around inclusion and racial equality . In fact , it has been going on for decades now at Century College .
Angelia Millender , the President of Century College , said work related to learning how to serve a more diverse student population began between
Angelia Millender
2005 and 2010 when the community ’ s demographics began to shift . The College has also been intentional about its partnerships and outreach with diverse communities , influencing the college ’ s diverse student enrollments to currently reflect 42 percent of students of color , 48 percent first-generation students , 59 percent part-time students , and 30 percent of new students are Pell eligible .
“ We are proud of the diversity of our student population , as it enriches classrooms , co-curricular learning , and our college community ,” President Millender said .
“ Our work in addressing racial equity as well as addressing diversity and inclusion with all populations of students has been ongoing ,” added Pakou Yang , Vice President , Century College . “ In 2011 , Century College made the decision to join Achieving the Dream ( ATD ) network , a national consortium of community colleges across the nation .”
Pakou Yang vhedc . com 17