For Immediate Release
Contact: Anthony Flint 617-661-3016 x116
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Partnerships between municipalities and non-profit institutions such as universities and medical centers will be explored at a major conference put on by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and The Cecil Group, Monday April 7 at the Holy Cross Hogan Center in Worcester, Mass.
Eds, Meds and Municipalities: Developing Shared Goals and Strategies for Mutually Beneficial Results, will feature Tina Brooks, undersecretary at the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, among speakers from both regional cities and “anchor” institutions.
The conference aims to help municipalities of varying sizes form better partnerships with such anchor institutions as colleges and hospitals, which are very often economic engines and important components of thriving downtowns, said Rosalind Greenstein, senior fellow and chair of the Department of Economic and Community Development at the Lincoln Institute.
In addition to Brooks, who will address the economic impact of educational, medical and research institutions in Massachusetts and how they can reinforce community development and downtown revitalization goals, speakers include Michael F. Collins, MD, interim chancellor, UMass Medical School and senior vice president for the health sciences, University of Massachusetts; Westfield State College president Evan Dobelle; and Steve Cecil, principal at The Cecil Group.
Panelists including Monica Anderson, Neighborhood Liaison, Community Relations, Miriam Hospital, Providence, RI; Mark Bilotta, chief executive of the Colleges of Worcester Consortium; Northampton Mayor Mary Clare Higgins; and Omega Johnson, president, Old Hill Neighborhood in Springfield, will explore the issues that each partner faces in city-university/hospital-community partnerships. Jack Foley, vice president for government, community affairs, and campus services, Clark University; New Bedford economic development director Matt Morrissey; and Omar Blaik, CEO, U3 Ventures, Philadelphia, will examine tools for effective relationships among institutions and municipalities.
The strategies to be discussed include programmatic, physical, and investment opportunities to spur community and economic development, a major theme in the Lincoln Institute's City, Land, and the University program.
Eds, Meds, and Municipalities is also co-sponsored by the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, the Center for Urban and Regional Policy at Northeastern University, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, and the Colleges of Worcester Consortium.
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