For the past two Tuesday nights for a couple hours at our local public school’s computer lab, a small group of women joined me for our first ever community education class in our North Dakota prairie town. We touched on why to engage in social media and then learned about a few social media out posts. Then it was time for each to connect and engage, learning the technology on their own.
This was not just our first social media class.
It was our first community education program.
I loved that social media was the first topic. Next month is financial planning and then wood working. The cost is $5 per month.
Needless to say, change is difficult on the prairie. People do not flock to the bright, shiny new object. First we had to get people to even attend a community ed class and then the term “social media” was even more of a challenge.
I highly commend the three person committee that spearheaded to start the community education effort and to my friend Brooke for stepping out of her comfort zone to schedule social media as the first topic of the year’s class schedule. She called me asking earlier in the summer saying “You know how you do that social media thing?”
Yes, I do that social media thing and was thrilled to be a part of our community’s first effort to help others engage in social media.
A warm blog applause and appreciation for the few community women who stepped up to participate in our first ever class and engage in social media to do that “social media thing” with me.
Each attendee had a specific purpose of why they wanted to learn more about social media. I loved hearing their background and story.
One woman wanted to learn more about social media to help our local county extension service and 4-H clubs which is a part of her professional job.
Another woman wanted to gain more information from digital media, engage in social media to stay connected to family and also to expand her thinking, understanding and interests.
Another wanted to learn more about her hobbies, sewing and cooking but she wanted to use social media to gather the information. I also told her she should have a blog about the amazing cooking she already does. It is authentic, unique, German and if anything I at least want to be a visitor to her kitchen to learn her techniques and recipes!
My friend Brooke is a mother of four young children, a wife and working professional. She doesn’t have another minute she can squeeze out of her day for social media but knew it was time she made it not just something she would do for 30 minutes a week but instead try to engage to make it a part of her mommy life and career in advocating for children.
I only wished we would have had this social media class for the next nine months of Tuesday nights. We have so much more to learn, connect and engage on in social media.
The first ever class of prairie dwelling social media divas
Living in remote and rural America, I believe social media gives us a platform to connect in way we never have before and it is a huge opportunity.
It gives us an opportunity to learn about the world in way we have never have known before while connecting others to our rewarding and honest prairie life.
I believe social media is a key building block to rural America’s future.
We have computers, Blackberrys and soon will have I-Phones.We have broadband technology…equaling lightning fast internet connections. We have businesses, schools, churches, heritage, culture and opportunity. But the prairie has very few people! Maybe people will learn through social media we live on the last frontier of tranquility, have plenty of jobs, a booming North Dakota economy in agriculture, energy and healthcare and they will move to the prairie.
And maybe they won’t. But either way we will be connected and engaged, all five of us.
If every week we have five more people engage in social media in each little prairie town imagine what social media can do for rural America.
The future is bright.
What are you doing to engage, connect or tell your story?
Are you a social media diva? C’mon I know it is in you.
Thank you for this, sister. I totally needed to be reminded why social media is important to rural life. It’s not always easy to be the one leading the “new new thing” in small town North Dakota, but you remind me why I need to keep pushing on. Love you Katie!
Thank you for being such a positive social media role model. I totally agree with you and hope to see a lot more rural North Dakota folks making use of social media in the coming months. This could be SO huge for agriculture. Thanks again!
Great post! I wouldn’t call myself a diva…but close. By the way I left you an award on my blog today! ~Kimberly
http://www.stinkerpinker.com
Great idea to have social networking class. I am from ND too BTW. Love seeing other ND bloggers out there!