Christian Century noted that in a "one-month, 13-county 'teaching conference' based in Dillon, South Carolina, 9,000 converts, most of them black, joined the Baha'i faith (sic), with hundreds more signing declaration cards in similar efforts throughout the south." The state with the single largest Baháʼí population was now South Carolina. This was followed by a larger demographic change when Persian refugees from the Iranian Revolution of 1978-9 probably adding 15% to the national community though often in just a few urban areas. Overall demographics are not available save to note that the average community size - assembly or not - was about 5 people in 1947 and just over 14 in 1991. At around 77,000 members in America, in 1982 Baháʼís testified before a Congress subcommittee on the situation in Iran following the Islamic revolution and this was followed up a couple years later, and again in 1988. Meanwhile the accelerated growth of the worldwide community in the 1960s-1980s yielded a challenge for the social and economic development of communities. According to the Baháʼí teachings, development should increase people's self-reliance, communal solidarity, giving access to knowledge, and, where possible, removing sources of injustice. Spiritual, moral and material development should be linked together. These priorities are envisioned as crucial to the development of world peace. The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of Justice dated 20 October 1983 was released. The Office of Social and Economic Development was established and Baháʼís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Baháʼí teachings, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Baháʼí socioeconomic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. The Americas as a total held a significant percentage of these. Some examples in the United States: In 1984 the Center for Interracial Understanding was established in the summer of 1984 at Louhelen. Another project called a residential college, was founded at Louhelen in September 1985, and was part of its conception. It was announced in March 1986 it was accepting applications for the September 1986 enrollment combining formal study of the religion with a degree earning study at one or two nearby colleges. Students would live and work at the school, receive training, and go to