David Peters, professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, has received a $650,000 grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (Agriculture and Food Research Initiative) for his study titled, “Understanding Rural Quality of Life in an Era of Demographic Transition and COVID-19 Recovery: 2024 Wave of the Iowa Small Towns Project.”

The long term goal of this integrated research and extension project is to identify and disseminate effective place-based strategies to maintain quality of life in small towns impacted by demographic changes and COVID-19 in the rural Midwest. Project will use a participatory approach by working with local partners in 6 meatpacking communities. Partners include the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Ethnic Minorities of Burma Advocacy and Resource Center (EMBARC), Iowa Farm Bureau, and Iowa Council of Governments.