2013 NADO Annual Training Conference2013 NADO Annual Training Conference

Overview of White House Council on Strong Cities,

Strong Communities (SC2)

Matthew DalbeyDeputy Director

White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities

The Strong Cities, The Strong Cities, Strong Communities Initiative (SC2)Strong Communities Initiative (SC2)

MissionMission

To strengthen local municipal capacity and spark economic growth in economically distressed communities.

How was SC2 Created? How was SC2 Created?

Conversations with Mayors, Members of Congress, foundations, non-profits and other key executives and stakeholders working in economically distressed communities highlighted the following:

1. Challenges of local governments facing disinvestment and other economic shocks;

2. Opportunity to better align and improve existing federal programs; and;

3. Need for a clearer and more coordinated relationship with the federal government.

In response, in July 2011 the Obama Administration launched SC2, an innovative and flexible initiative designed to strengthen local capacity and spark economic growth in economically distressed communities.

SC2 Council SC2 Council • March 15, 2012, President Obama signed an Executive Order

establishing the White House Council on Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2 Council).

• The Council, which is Co-Chaired by Secretary Donovan and Cecilia Munoz, Director of the Domestic Policy Council.

• From the Executive Order:  “Cities, towns, and regions across our Nation continue to face difficult economic challenges.  Enhancing current Federal assistance is helping to lift communities out of distress…..By partnering with cities and regions to augment their vision for stability and economic growth, the SC2 was designed to help communities strengthen their capacity to create jobs and more competitive business climates, and implement locally driven community and regional planning approaches that lead to sustained economic growth, as well as ensure that Federal assistance is more efficiently provided and used.”

SC2 CouncilWhat We Do

The SC2 Council has been tasked with overseeing the current components of the SC2 initiative:

1) the deployment of federal inter-agency “Community Solutions Teams” (CSTs) in seven pilot locations: Chester, Cleveland, Detroit, Fresno, Memphis, New Orleans, Youngstown.

2) the placement of philanthropically funded Fellows in these pilot locations;

3) an Economic Visioning Challenge prize competition to produce comprehensive economic development plans in other pilot locations; 4) the establishment of the National Resource Network (SC2 Network), a one-stop portal for communities to access federal technical assistance. In addition to assisting specific pilot locations, the initiative seeks to identify broader policy lessons that can be applied to many other communities around the country. The SC2 Network will also help to surface these lessons.

SC2 CouncilSC2 Council

Current PrioritiesCurrent Priorities

• Expand to a new round of SC2 sites with inter-agency Community Solutions Teams.

• Stand up the SC2 National Resource Network (NRN), which will reach over 100 distressed communities over the next four years.

• Grow the SC2 Fellowship Program through ongoing collaboration with philanthropy.

• Embed SC2 model in the field approach to federal-local collaboration, across agencies.

• Adopt policy and programmatic improvements, innovations, emerging from work on the ground.