Denise Schlegel sometimes
compares herself to a juggler, but even P.T. Barnum's finest couldn't
keep 20, 30, even 50 balls in the air at once. That's what it takes to
rekindle a community, and as executive director of Schuylkill County's
VISION, Schlegel is constantly in motion, guiding county leaders toward
common goals.
"I call it nuclear fusion and fission at the same time," she
says. "I'm usually juggling up to 25 projects with partners—businesses, schools, associations—any and every organized entity
that can provide resources and expertise. You learn to juggle, and it's
fantastic to watch so many people busy at once."
Schuylkill County's
VISION, a community-based effort dedicated to improving the quality of
life in this eastern-central Pennsylvania county, is only three years
old, but already it has achieved some impressive results. Prior to 1997,
for example, the county had averaged only 10 new jobs each year for 25
years. In 1998, the number of jobs created jumped to 800, and in 1999
to 1,385. More than 113 partnerships, 49 strategies, 1,000 people, thousands
of volunteer hours, and $11,000 annually in in-kind donations have contributed
to the process. In fact, the outpouring of help and support has been so
remarkable that Schlegel uses an unusual term to describe it: "coopetition."
"That's when
people cooperate and compete together. Everyone is onboard with the philosophy,
and we work together for the betterment of the community," Schlegel
explains. "That's the magic in this process. The community has been
given permission to present new leadership at all levels, which in turn
has empowered people to use their ideas and expertise to make things happen.
The VISION office is simply a clearinghouse for their talents. If technical
assistance, resources, or other partners are needed, I let the people
know what we need—not only on my own, but also through my board,
steering committee, and the VISION partners—and they let me know
where we can find it."
Like so many other
communities where coal, textiles, and farming once dominated, Schuylkill
County needed to head in new directions. But where? And how? The first
clue came from an unexpected source. An effort to erect a Vietnam War
memorial had languished for decades in the hearts of county veterans.
When representatives of the county newspaper, the Pottsville Republican,
offered to help, skepticism gradually turned to hope as a series of articles
and events raised $120,000. The day before Mother's Day in 1997, the memorial
was unveiled before a crowd of 3,000 citizens, including once-disenfranchised
veterans proudly wearing dress uniforms.
That experience sparked something greater, a celebration of and reconciliation
with the past. People began thinking, if this community effort could ignite
such feelings, what else is possible?
"The people needed a framework to think of a better world and permission
to dream it," says Jim Kevlin, editor of the Pottsville Republican and
a key player in both the Vietnam memorial and the VISION projects. "They
wanted Schuylkill County to be a place where their children could stay and raise
their grandchildren, but there was a real sense of hopelessness here."
Networking led the community to Henry Luke, a consultant from Jacksonville,
Florida, who has developed a process he calls "VISION." More than
40 communities across the country have implemented his process to establish
strategic plans with clearly defined goals. Schuylkill leaders, who adopted
Luke's process and incorporated VISION into their organization's name, worked
through focus groups, citizen summits, and steering committees to establish
six key areas of focus: economic development, education, infrastructure, quality
of life, government, and private-sector leadership. They defined four key benchmarks
to measure overall progress—job creation, increased earnings, improved
education, and a lowering of the poverty rate. With consensus on the direction
they should take, they began to move forward.
Every Project Interlinked
To keep the effort's momentum going, Schlegel begins her days early, often
with meetings in her office overlooking Pottsville, the county seat. On this
morning, Darlene Robbins, executive director of the four-county Manufacturers
Association of Mid-Eastern Pennsylvania, has joined Schlegel and Mark Scarbinsky,
director of the County of Schuylkill Office of Economic Development. Officially,
they each represent one of the six key areas, but every project is interlinked.
Manufacturing needs better-educated workers, which encourages economic development,
which requires cooperation from schools and government, and so on.
"Because we lacked the skill level needed to compete in the labor market,
we have worked through the VISION process to complete some phenomenal education
programs," Robbins says. "For example, the Schuylkill Community Education
Council, which is a coalition of all of our post-secondary-training schools,
four-year colleges, and regional colleges, has put together articulated agreements
to provide specialized education for employers with special needs. Everyone—superintendents
and [representatives of] industry, economic development, and government—came
together to produce these educational programs, and Denise was there from day
one to provide support."
Another example, Highridge Business Park along the Interstate 81 corridor,
represents a collective effort between government, infrastructure, and economic
development partners. Together they attracted Lowe's Companies, which built
a 1.2-million-square-foot regional distribution center that brought 600 new
jobs and provides about $600,000 in real estate taxes annually. Other successes
include a recently passed $10 million bond obligation, with $3.6 million for
economic development projects, and a Keystone Opportunity Zone (KOZ) designation
that provides tax breaks for companies that locate on underused properties in
Schuylkill and Carbon Counties.
"Over the years the county had become reactive," Scarbinsky says.
"Now, thanks to VISION, we're able to stand back and be more proactive.
The KOZ program, for example, required us to go through a very competitive application
process under a tight deadline. Denise and her assistant made it reality. I
know we wouldn't be as far along without Denise. She's played the role of catalyst
to develop all these coalitions."
At midlife, Schlegel, who has been on the job since May 1997, can look back
on her life and see what led her to this place at this time. She grew up in
the Philadelphia area in a hard-working, single-parent family, and credits her
mother with instilling in her a message she recalls every day: Everyone counts.
She began practicing that philosophy early. At age 15, she was already working
with the Easter Seals in Delaware; she later served as a director at the Easter
Seals in Wilmington and at the Pennsylvania Association for People with Mental
Retardation, and then as CEO of the Pennsylvania Hospice Network.
"Most of my career has been within the fields of health and human services.
I worked with people with very severe disabilities, and they taught me that
you can do almost anything once you make up your mind to," she says. "They've
taught me a tremendous amount of courage, creative thinking, and motivation.
They gave me what I needed to be able to take a community and say, "You
have everything you need to get to the future. You just have to go ahead and
do it.'"
Schlegel now lives on a third-generation family farm with her husband, Lanier,
and two children, Andrew, age 17, and Rebecca, age 14. To ease the pressure
of her 50-hour workweek (down from the 60-to-70-hour weeks during VISION's formative
years), she tends a patchwork of herb gardens and goes fly-fishing.
Most days, Schlegel takes a working lunch, often at one of several new cafes,
coffee shops, and restaurants that reflect the efforts of the Pottsville Area
Development Corporation, a VISION partner. Today, Kevlin joins her at the Greystone,
a popular restaurant in what was formerly the old Park Hotel. The Pottsville
Republican carries regular updates on and news about VISION projects, and last
year ran a popular year-long series entitled "Defying Out-Migration,"
which profiled young adults who had moved back to Schuylkill County.
"The paper has provided information and accountability for VISION,"
Schlegel says. "They never hesitated to be a part of our community development,
though they maintained an impartial stance. I don't think we would have functioned
as well without that piece in place."
Expanding Leadership
The VISION process has fostered new and expanded leadership within all ages
and demographics. The Healthy Community Strategic Alliance, which is made up
of 84 health- and human-service pro-viders, schools, and state and local governments,
focuses on developing solutions to health issues in the county. The youngest
activists, members of a countywide youth group called INSIGHT (Inspiring New
Standards Involving Goals Helping Teens), work in the high schools to get other
students involved.
"When we talk with the people in this community, explain what really needs
to be done, and allow them to take the leadership role, we bring new leaders
to the table every day," Schlegel says. "That's exciting, because
it's not by any one organization or person. It's owned by the community as a
whole, and it's amazing what they can accomplish."
Even naysayers are important to the process. Legitimate concerns are welcomed
and, whenever possible, integrated into the master plan. The Schuylkill Conservancy,
for example, spoke up about preserving green spaces, and the county responded
with a new parks and recreation commission to address these needs.
"That was a wake-up call for us. We said, 'You're right. We need to find
a balance.' An open process is so important," Schlegel adds.
Not all objections are as easily dealt with, but again, Schlegel's early training
keeps her pushing forward. According to Kevlin, her high energy level has made
a difference. "When you are involved in this kind of process, there are
going to be obstacles," he says. "You have to be willing to cope with
opposition—even anger and resistance. Denise has that resilience. If she
gets pushed back, she bounces back and tries to go at it from another direction."
A framed motto in Schlegel's office reads "From Vision . . . to Reality."
She admits that the first phase of VISION may have been easier than the second
phase will be, but the partners are encouraged by early results. Several key
benchmarks have been surpassed: Instead of 12 strategic alliances, the partners
formed 113, and the goal for new jobs in 1999 was exceeded by 85. Phase two
is now beginning, and the public has recently reviewed a revised VISION document
that includes 13 new priorities. "We wanted them to let us know if we'd
forgotten anything," Schlegel adds. VISION partners are now considering
the action steps they'll take toward these new priorities.
Schlegel's afternoons are usually spent answering a stack of telephone messages
or attending more meetings. She drives up Mahantongo Street for a meeting at
the Yuengling Mansion, once home to the family of America's oldest brewery,
Yuengling Brewery (which will soon open a second plant in the county). The 1913
mansion now houses the Schuylkill County Council for the Arts, one of the partners
involved in VISION's quality-of-life projects. Schuylkill County boasts more
than 40 arts groups, including its own symphony, youth orchestra, art guilds,
dance troupes, and theater companies.
"Rather than competing, they are finding that they can work together to
help each other. That provides a quality of life that means a lot when we're
selling the county to a future employer," Schlegel adds.
Back at the office again, the sun is setting as Schlegel answers more phone
messages and sorts through her mail. Several requests for help mean more phone
calls, more balls to juggle. She sits back and sighs, then points at three framed
photo-etchings of an Appalachian family. They are her sister's work from years
ago, and they have hung in every one of Schlegel's offices as a reminder.
"This is what it's all about," she says, looking at the children's eager faces. "People. It's all about the people."
Lynda McDaniel is a freelance writer based in Arlington, Virginia.
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