This cohort included 27 inspiring community organizers and leaders working with organizations such as ACER, Black Army Brigade, Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative, District 10 Como Community Council, Greater East Side St. Paul – District 2, HOME Line, Housing Justice Center, Kingfield Neighborhood Association, Lyndale Neighborhood Association, Longfellow Community Council, Minnesota 8, Minneapolis Promise Zone, Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association, Strive Publishing, St. Paul Human Rights Division, SPPS Office of Early Learning, West Side Community Organization, Wilder Foundation, Youth Farm, and beyond!    

Also, special thanks to our graduation keynote speaker…

CURA's Neighborhood Organizing and Leadership program is looking for Black, Indigenous and People of Color to participate in a free training to support and assist them on their journey toward leadership. We are looking for Black, Indigenous and People of Color who want to create change and fight injustice in their community through neighborhood board membership.

The Board Representation Leadership Training for Black, Indigenous and People of Color will be Wednesday, May 11, 2022, 5:30pm - 8:30pm via Zoom virtual…

Last Friday, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter announced the formation of a 41-Member Rent Stabilization Stakeholder Group. The Center for Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA) has been selected to convene this group with CURA Director Edward Goetz and CURA Director of Community Based Research C Terrence Anderson acting as lead facilitators. The group will meet February through May to consider improvements and enhancements to rent stabilization in St. Paul. A final report will be completed by this summer. The rent stabilization ballot measure was approved by voters 53% to 47% in the election last November.

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Apply Today - Deadline February 21

Potential participants should fill out an application form by the February 21 deadline by visiting: http://z.umn.edu/nnow. Because space is limited, we will contact you shortly after the application deadline to schedule an interview or confirm your enrollment.

Apply now for Neighborhoods Now!

Neighborhoods Now! Spring 2022 Program Calendar

The course is April…

CURA’s Artist Neighborhood Partnership Initiative (ANPI) provides small grants to artists of color and Native artists working in neighborhoods in Minneapolis, St. Paul and the surrounding suburbs. ANPI grants recognize the valuable role that artists and the arts play in the work of fostering neighborhood wellbeing, and are intended to support the leadership of artists in these efforts. This grant program is particularly focused on directly funding individual artists or groups of artists working to build a more equitable Twin Cities.

We are now accepting proposals for one-year support of artist driven projects.

Dr. Brittany Lewis, CURA’s senior research associate, has been named a 2021 Community-Engaged Scholar. Dr. Lewis directs CURA’s large-scale community-based action research agenda advancing interdisciplinary public scholarship in urban studies, African American studies, gender studies, and public policy while maintaining her role as a community activist and thought leader.

The President’s Community-Engaged Scholar systemwide award program recognizes up to ten scholars—faculty or professional academic or administrative employees (P&A)—each year for exemplary community-engaged scholarship in their respective field(s) of inquiry. From a competitive pool of Community-Engaged…

Hennepin County Board of Commissioners approved a contract with the Center of Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA) to establish an Anti-Displacement Workgroup related to the design and construction of the METRO Blue Line Extension light rail. This action to invest in anti-displacement is intended to support corridor residents, businesses, and equitable development in the corridor.

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Workgroup will comprise diverse perspectives

With community input, the project team designed an initial work plan, and local groups submitted proposals for the contract. A committee with corridor community and business…

We believe that support and fair treatment of individuals with criminal records is fundamental for a functioning society. The fact that our criminal justice systems create disparities means our society is not working properly. Criminal records impact individuals and families far beyond the punishment of a crime and keep people from living a good life, which everyone has a right to.

Project Goals

As a project-based initiative, we seek projects and work that align with our values and goals to support our mission and vision.