From Scott Suttell:

Tom Sudow, executive director of the Beachwood Chamber of Commerce, is one of the experts quoted in a New York Times story about how entrepreneurs and many small business owners struggle with the high cost of health insurance.

“The cost of buying health insurance, experts say, is increasingly rattling start-ups that never anticipated the escalating price tag, and in some cases the expense keeps would-be entrepreneurs on the sidelines, especially those with pre-existing medical conditions,” according to The Times…

Something to talk about with Tom at Midtown Mornings tomorrow morning.

Crain’s Cleveland Business

Just heard from Adele. She isn’t feeling up to doing the interview tomorrow, so I’ve postoned it. Will be providing updated info ASAP.
Upcoming.org: POSTPONED: Meet.The.Bloggers Interview with Adele Eisner at Tower Press Building Suite 109 (Friday, December 1, 2006)

Over @ Hypothetically Speaking:

And, here are a few particular tea leaves that Fisher left in his cup for observeers to pick through. Sure, some of its rhetoric, but actually some of phrasing he uses are more or less code words that are meant to signal to experts where they intend to go:

Every state has its own unique, natural strengths. We will inventory those strengths and invest in those strengths. And make Ohio first in areas where we can attract the best and brightest talent and the best and brightest companies and workers from around the world and the country.

. . .

You cannot separate out primary and second and higher education from economic development and growth. So obviously we have a strong interest in making sure that every child in Ohio graduates not just with a certificate of graduation but with a certificate of skills that helps them succeed in the global market place, and helps them get the best possible job, preferably in Ohio, where they can raise a family and live here for the rest of their lives.

. . .

Gov. Strickland and I talked about creating an economic growth scorecard by which we can measure our progress and you can measure our progress.

I’m hoping Fisher will do a Meet.The.Bloggers* interview soon…

Hypothetically Speaking: More on Strickland/Fisher and economic development

Bazaar Bizarre, the indie/DIY craft fair extraordinaire, takes place this Saturday at 1300 Gallery from noon to 9:00 p.m. There’s be coffee for George, and plenty of unusual handmade items for all the other stockings on your mantel from 25+ artists. This year we’re sponsored by CRAFT magazine and ReadyMade, so come early & grab some free copies.

Cleveland is one of 4 Bazaar Bizarre cities nationwide (the others are Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco), and this is our third year at 1300. Sadly, 1300 closes this month, leaving a large hole in the local arts scene. (Also, please note that the link above is the correct one for Bazaar Bizarre — the Free Times printed a link to Bizarre Bazaar, a NSFW Los Angeles show that is in no way related to this one).

What else is happening this weekend if you want to avoid the mall at all costs? The ArtCraft Building Holiday Sale is both Saturday and Sunday, which should give you ample time to get all your shopping done.

And then you can sit back with a cup of that coffee, no?

Jack’s reading “The Renaissance Soul” by Margaret Lobenstine:

The renaissance souls I know are as interested and fluent in politics and technology as they are in food, the arts, and friendships. A nap on any given day can be as good use of time as running fast in the blogsphere. They are unrestricted in their interests and varied in their passions. They define focus in the eastern way of broad awareness rather than in the western way of narrow focus…

It’s people like that who will change Northeast Ohio for the better.

jack/zen » Blog Archive » More on Renaisance souls

I’m sitting here in Lorain at a citizen session to define the strategic issues and initiatives for Lorain County Community College. I’m watching a master at work.

President Roy Church is guiding our session, four hours smartly managed into conversation, work exercises and electronic voting. (”You have ten seconds to give us your top three priorities on the list!”)

President Church is clearly an expert in “strategic doing”.

He understands and applies an appreciative inquiry. He adopts an abundance mindset. He focuses on core issues. He articulates links and uncovers the meaning embedded in the group discussions. Supported by a small team from the College, he neatly summarizes these insights and quckly moves on. In sum, he has mastered the civic skills of promoting open discussion with leadership direction.

(LCCC has used this process in a number of different contexts, including developing their action plan for early college high schools. Tonight, LCCC is using keypad technology from a company in Youngstown. Turning Technologies . Cost about $2,000, according to Jeff Sherman, Director of the Spitzer Conference Center.)

At the end of the evening, he will deliver a written report of the evening’s events. I’ve been all over the country paticipating (and leading) regional forums. The team at Lorain County Community College is the best I’ve seen.

Michigan’s three research universities agree to expand collaboration.

This virtual research corridor represents a shared vision among the three schools’ presidents and provides for a more formal mechanism for collaboration among the faculty…

Michigan’s Big Three public research universities’ vision of a new University Research Corridor designed to stimulate the state’s economy through collaborative research is a decent first step that could be improved through further practical strategies and by looking at what works elsewhere.

MSU, U-M, Wayne State creating research corridor

How will this approach scale?

Entitled Credit Yourself: The Way to Financial Fitness, the new program is designed to educate individuals and families on basic components of personal financial management to help eliminate barriers to mainstream banking and home ownership.

Key Foundation and East Akron Neighborhood Development Corporation Kick Off Financial Literacy Program