An opportunity for local governments to get some extra help developing economic development strategies on attracting and retaining small businesses and supporting job creation is available now.
The third annual Sunstone Economic Development Challenge @ USC Price is signing up participating cities now. There is a prospective client city orientation scheduled on Zoom from 12 to 1 p.m. PST Friday, August 9th. To join the Zoom call, please register here: https://lu.ma/fx4wx28s.
In this creative partnership, students at the University of Southern California Sol Price School of Public Policy are partnered with economic development leaders in area municipalities. The student teams work with those leaders to explore how to support and grow small businesses and create jobs in various sectors in those cities.
That process starts in August 2024, with the beginning of the new semester at USC. It culminates in April 2025 with presentations from the student teams, who are vying for cash prizes. Those presentations offer cities outlines for new economic development initiatives and programs.
The Sunstone Community Fund, a donor-advised fund, sponsors the competition.
This government-education-private business partnership has been key for Sunstone Management since the beginning. Sunstone CEO John Keisler, a USC MPA graduate himself, has helped foster partnerships with the California State University and University of California systems. He said the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy was the perfect partner to bring municipal governments into the mix.
“The USC Price School is one of the oldest and strongest public sector training programs in the nation dedicated to shaping the future of local government leadership,” Keisler said. “Sunstone Management is proud to partner with universities like USC to identify innovative economic development strategies for cities through programs like the Sunstone Economic Development Challenge @ USC Price.”
The inaugural program resulted in proposals for Long Beach, Irvine, El Segundo, and Garden Grove. The second-year program resulted in proposals for Culver City, Lomita, Pasadena, San Bernardino, and Torrance. Phong said the program this year will host five cities. For details about the program, visit the Challenge website.
For more, contact Ryan Phong at ryan.phong@sunstoneinvestment.com soon.