The workshop, held from November 12-14, was hosted by the Small Town Center at the Mississippi State University School of Architecture, in partnership with the Historic Preservation Division of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, and the Center for Community Development at Delta State University. It marked the 28th Your Town workshop held nationally, the second to be held in Mississippi, and the first to be held focusing on issues of importance to the African American community. Lectures and presentations included focuses on the relationship between welfare reform and local economic development; case studies on heritage tourism; and the role of African American churches in community development. The Your Town workshop for regional leaders focused on design challenges in Jonestown, a majority African-American small town in the Mississippi Delta region — with an eye towards lifting up cultural assets as local economic drivers, in the face of a decline in industry.

Read more from the Cleveland Workshop Notebook.