The Pennsylvania State University and the Borough of State College are excited to host the 2019 ITGA City & University Relations Conference, May 19-22. The last day to submit your proposals for the conference is Friday, February 1. The conference tracks are designed to reflect the broad range of issues and stakeholders involve in growing a thriving community, while encouraging the exploration of the complex, nuanced and ever-changing challenges our communities face. To see the conference tracks and submit a proposal, click here. Early registration rates end the same day. To register or learn more about the conference, click here. To see what colleagues are saying about the value of attending the conference, click here. We look forward to seeing you in May! ITGA.org

The University of Colorado's public outreach and community engagement efforts are coming into clearer focus, thanks to a revamped tool that showcases the impact of programs and initiative statewide. The University of Colorado system recently launched a new interactive map designed for public use that visually describes how all four campuses are serving Colorado communities through outreach and patient care. CU Boulder's outreach website was created in 2010 so campus and community partners could discover the university's outreach and engagement resources, learn about the breadth of community outreach programs, find faculty and staff experts, and explore current program impact. University of Colorado Boulder

Florida Atlantic University's Owls Care Leader Program has been ranked No. 1 in the nation for educating students about mental health, drugs, and alcohol awareness, as well as named "Outstanding Peer Education Group" by NASPA. The Owls Care Leader program is an initiative housed within Owls Care Health Promotion intended to further create a culture of caring at FAU and enhance student development by educating students on how to care for themselves, their peers and the university community. The Owl's Care program's areas of emphasis parallel three areas of the social ecological model commonly used in prevention programming: caring for self, caring for others; and caring for the university. For more information on the Owls Care Leader Program, click here. Florida Atlantic University

In one of the final events of the University of Stellenbosch's centenary year, the rector of the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa, Professor Wim De Villiers, convened a 'town and gown' conference on 29 and 30 November 2018. The conference attracted the leadership of some of the world's leading college towns and aimed to explore the place-based responsibilities and opportunities for universities in small towns and secondary cities. Each university presented an assessment and analysis of its relationship to the host town, city or region and was asked to highlight some of the opportunities and challenges that defined that relationship. The conference illustrated that there is no longer a zero-sum calculation between civic engagement and academic excellence. University World News

Adults with student loans are less likely to remain in rural areas than those without it, and adults with the highest student loan balances are the most likely to migrate to cities, according to new research from the Federal Reserve. "Right now we are experiencing the greatest opportunity gap between rural and urban places in history," said Matt Dunne, the founder of the Hartland, Vermont-based Center on Rural Innovation, which is working on creating rural "innovation hubs." Dunne said he made a proposal in the state's last legislative session to create a program that would forgive up to $20,000 of student debt over two years for college grads who bought houses in rural parts of the state. Other communities have developed similar programs, such as Marquette, Kansas, which offers free land to people who agree to build a house in the rural town. Valley News Live