Rural America Today

The rural parish, while distinct in its mission and character, is not separate from the social and economic life of rural America. A synopsis of the trends and conditions in the countryside may prove helpful in understanding the current situation of rural parishes. Here are highlights from a Carsey Institute* report on the Challenges and Opportunities in Rural America (March 2006):

"The simplest truth about rural America is this: the more rural a place is, the harder its circumstances are. The most remote and sparsely populated areas are more likely to be persistently poor, to be losing population, and to have an unskilled labor force on the losing end of the global economy. Beyond this simple truth, however, generalizations are deceptive. For every rural county that has lost population since 2000, there is another that has gained new residents. For every rural place that depends on an agricultural economy, there are six more in which manufacturing is the economic mainstay and two more in which federal or state government is the largest employer."

The Carsey Report confirms what we found to be challenges faced by Catholic dioceses and parishes around the country:

Poverty rates are higher in rural than in urban America.

Alcohol and drug abuse (including prescription drugs) and methamphetamine use are major problems for rural areas.

Many low-skill jobs in rural areas are vulnerable to economic globalization; international competition is causing continued decline in low-skill jobs within agriculture and manufacturing industries.

Young adults continue to leave rural America. At the same time, people in their 50s and 60s are increasingly moving into rural areas.

Rural America is growing more diverse. Since 1980, one-quarter of the population increase in rural America has come from the growing Hispanic population.

Persistent population loss is occurring in only parts of the country: Great Plains, parts of the Corn Belt, the lower Mississippi Valley and central Appalachia. Rural parts of the South and West see increases in part due to retirement communities.

Counties with attractive natural and recreational amenities
hold onto and attract residents (coastal, lake, mountains). Proximity to cities is also a major advantage for rural areas.

* Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire: www.carseyinstitute.unh.edu


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This article was published in the Fall 2007 issue of Catholic Rural Life©. No portion of this article may be reproduced without written permission from The National Catholic Rural Life Conference. To purchase the Fall 2007 issue of Catholic Rural Life, please contact The National Catholic Rural Life Conference office at 4625 Beaver Avenue, Des Moines, Iowa 50310-2199, call (515) 270-2634, or e-mail ncrlc@mchsi.com. The cost is $2.50 an issue plus postage and handling.