Resources

St. Louis Fed's 2012 Annual Report Available

The St. Louis Fed's 2012 annual report includes an essay from the Bank's new Center for Household Financial Stability. Authored by the Center's director, Ray Boshara, and chief economist, William Emmons, the essay provides data on the damage to household wealth during the Great Recession, explores the circumstances that led to large declines in household wealth, makes the case that such wealth has not fully recovered and shows why all of that matters for U.S. economic recovery. The analysis highlights the focus of the new Center—rebuilding the household balance sheets of struggling American families. To read the annual report, watch a video about the essay topic and learn more about the Center and its research, go to www.stlouisfed.org/hfs

New Informational Podcasts

Experts from industry and academia provide their thoughts on workforce development, entrepreneurship and employee training in these Economic Development podcasts.

• Revitalizing Downtown through Entrepreneurship
  Many cities support entrepreneurs as a way to create jobs, increase investment and restore vitality, especially in the urban core. Ray Leach from JumpStart and Joe Marinucci of the Downtown Cleveland Alliance discuss how communities can create a thriving entrepreneur base through innovative approaches to support services and by reimagining partnerships among local organizations.
• Employer and Lower-Wage Employee Perspectives on Training and Advancement
  There is value and a role for both the employee and employer in developing and enhancing the skill sets of lower-wage workers. Mark Popovich of the Hitachi Foundation and Jenny Benz of the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research discuss the findings of a recent study on this topic and its implications for policy and practice.
• Strictly Business: A Case for Greater Company Participation in Workforce Development
  How can employers be effective partners in improving the local workforce ecosystem? Peter Cappelli, professor and director of the Wharton School's Center for Human Resources, discusses how firms can provide on-the-job training for skills needed within their organizations.

To view transcripts or play the audio MP3 files, visit www.frbatlanta.org/podcasts/economicdevelopment/

IHCDA Launches Two New Web Sites

The IHCDA (Indiana Housing Community Development Authority) has created two fresh and user-friendly web sites: one for consumers, one for its partners. The consumer site is the primary page; it is designed for the general public to access and learn about what IHCDA does, populations served, etc. The partner site is intended for IHCDA's current, active partners, as well as potential partners. It houses more detailed, programmatic information and is driven by what would be sought out by a recipient and/or program administrator.