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In This Issue
New Stats on the Economy
Welcome Content Partners
Redesign Moves Forward
Quick Links
Insider's Update
June 15, 2012
Greetings!

Last month's Data Matters forums on the health & wellness and the economy in the Black Hills drew lots of participants from around our region and gave us great insights into the information needs of our community. As South Dakota Secretary of Health Doneen Hollingsworth said, data does matter if communities want to set realistic goals and track their progress toward achieving those goals.

All summer long we will be adding data and information to the Black Hills Knowledge Network to meet the needs articulated by the community during the forums. Be sure to follow our progress!
 
New Stats Posted on Region's Economy
Rapid City Metro GDP Compared to Sister Cities This week we posted new graphs that highlight changes in the Black Hills economy including a county-by-county comparison of personal income derived from government sources like Social Security or veteran's benefits. We have also added two new charts that compare the growth in our metropolitan economy (described as gross domestic product) compared to sister cities in surrounding states. Both of these graphs should be of interest to your local Chamber of Commerce and policymakers in your community.
 
Welcome Two New Content Partners
We are pleased to welcome two new content partners. KOTA/My Town and Native Sun News have agreed to share their content with the Black Hills Knowledge Network. They join our growing list of content partners which includes the Rapid City Journal, Black Hills Pioneer, Black Hills Corporation, and the Chiesman Center for Democracy.
 
Nerdery to Deliver Plans for Redesign
The programmers at the Nerdery in the Twin Cities have been working on recommendations for restructuring the Black Hills Knowledge Network to make it more user friendly. Their ideas will be embodied in a set of wireframes they plan to deliver to us next week. We'll be sending a copy of their plans to all the library partners and welcome your feedback.
 
One last word, if your city council, school board, county commission or a local community group would like to know more about the Black Hills Knowledge Network, let us know. We will work with you to provide a presentation tailored to your community.
 
Sincerely,
 
Eric Abrahamson    
Project Director
Have a question or suggestion for the Black Hills Knowledge Network? Let us know! Send an email to Eric Abrahamson ([email protected]) or Stephanie Bents ([email protected]).

The Black Hills Knowledge Network is an online, library-based regional information service that connects people to ideas and local information. Sponsored by the Black Hills Area Community Foundation and a consortium of eight public libraries including Rapid City, Spearfish, Sturgis, Custer, Deadwood, Lead, Wall and Whitewood, the Black Hills Knowledge Network has received funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Bush Foundation, Black Hills Vision, Regional Health, the South Dakota Community Foundation, the Rapid City Library Foundation, Friends of the Rapid City Library, the South Dakota Humanities Council (an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities), and other local funders.