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FEBRUARY MOSS BLOG ARCHIVE
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FIELD INSTRUCTORS CELEBRATE MCCALL STORIES, MLK DAY
by Genny Gerke
MOSS Field Instructor
As AmeriCorps members, Martin Luther King, Jr. day was the second of
three national service days for the MOSS field instructors. In
brainstorming project ideas we decided to interact with the community
of McCall, as well as provide a diverse perspective of its members and
visitors. Since 1994 MLK Jr. Day has offered an opportunity for
citizens to serve locally. Having been encouraged by our new president
to do just this, we felt that a day of collecting short interviews to
capture a profile of the community would be a lasting imprint that
could draw connections between generations and be a resource for local
historians and people interested in the past, present, and future of
the area.
Setting up home base at the McCall Public Library on January 19,
instructors weren’t sure if they would be able to interview many
‘walk-ins,’ but were prepared to approach people on the street to
contribute their perspective to our project. We asked locals and
non-locals about the community of McCall, changes they’ve seen in the
community since they’d been living or visiting here, and the
significance of the coming year for them. Although it’s hard to
measure the success of our project, a sense of thought and reflection
was seen in those who were hesitant to share their perspectives in the
audio recordings. We are hopeful that the voices we recorded will
continue to sound for larger ongoing projects and inspire others to
make a similar kind of reflection.
Audio recordings from this project are currently being compiled and
will soon be available at the McCall Public Library and an online
resource in the future.
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QUALITY PROGRAMS IN TIGHT TIMES
By Lynne Westerfield
Community Development
As MOSS’s grant writer, many people have asked me over the past several
months, how the search for funding is going in light of the recent
economic downturn. Because our K-12 program is subsidized by outside
funders by 30-50% - depending on participant income level -
fundraising is an integral part of our operation. We are always
seeking out partners who share our mission of bringing top quality
science education to Idaho’s youth and providing the best in training
to our nation’s future environmental leaders. Partners sometimes want
to underwrite our general programs and sometimes want to be a part of a
new development, such as our recent healthy and active lifestyles
initiative. Either way, we cannot operate and innovate without the
help of many different individuals and organizations across the
country.
Many funders and individuals are indeed tightening purse strings. For
our part, we have had to streamline costs to ensure that our programs
remain affordable to all participants, and we have had to seek
additional funding in order to help struggling students attend.
Through this process, we have been reminded how lucky we are to attract
the support of such quality individuals and organizations. As it turns
out, with failing banks and volatile markets, people tend to support
quality and established organizations in familiar arenas where they
know their money will make a difference. We have found that our
mission is one that has staying power, even under financial stress. If
you are one of the hundreds of individuals and organizations that
continue to support us, we thank you for your help. Because of you, we
continue to be a leader in science education and environmental
responsibility in Idaho. We believe in the work we do and are honored
that you do too.
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WHAT'S UP WITH THE MCCALL FIELD CAMPUS LEASE?
By Steve Hollenhorst
MOSS Executive Director
Many people have asked me to explain the McCall Field Campus Lease
Issue. They’ve read the stories in the paper and heard the rumors.
They’ve heard that the property is part of the land endowment dedicated
to the University, and don’t understand why the University would have to
pay rent to occupy its own endowment land, especially a rent of almost
$275,000 a year.
So in this blog I’ve included the whole story. Click here and you will find an explanation of
how the endowment land system works, a brief history of the Field Campus
and an explanation of the lease rate issue.
We are currently working on a solution that will insure that UI will be
able to continue to use the site to deliver educational, research, and
outreach programs to the citizens of Idaho. Several different
strategies have been discussed as a way to resolve the lease issue.
The most prominent of these is some sort of land trade where the Field
Campus property is traded to the Idaho Department of Parks and
Recreation and designated as part of Ponderosa State Park (the Field
Campus is located completed inside of Ponderosa State Park). IDPR
would then lease the property back to UI, which would continue to
operate on the site.
The benefit of this approach is that a) IDPR would secure the permanent
protection of this inholding inside of Ponderosa State Park; b) UI would
continue to provide its programs on the property; b) the trade lands
would generate market-rate revenue for UI, and; d) the property would
be used and operated in accordance with the desires of the City of
McCall, as expressed in the City’s Comprehensive Plan.
The challenge is coming up with the money to purchase the trade lands.
Ideas being considered are legislative appropriation (not very likely in
this economic climate), revenue bonds, and private donations, or a
combination of the above.
If a land trade option is just not possible, an interim approach could
be pursued in which the statue is changed to allow IDL to lease
endowment lands to the beneficiary of those lands for no cost or below
cost. This would allow UI to stay on the property and provide some
long-term protection from development, but not the other benefits that
would come from a land trade.
So that’s where we’re at. We have three years to work out a permanent
solution. I’m confident that given the support we’ve received from the
Legislature, IDL and IDPR, and the University, and of course Idaho
citizens, that we will get there.
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