Tri-Cities Area of Northeast Tennessee Prepares Its Workforce of the Future

KINGSPORT, Tenn., Nov. 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Winning Harvard's $100,000 Innovation in American Government Award underscores the determination in and around Kingsport, Tenn., to develop a regional workforce that is equipped for jobs of the future.

Kingsport won on the strength of its Academic Village - a downtown cluster of four institutions aimed at applied technology, healthcare professions, and higher education - and its county-wide "Educate and Grow" program, which emphasizes a workplace relevant K-14 curriculum and provides access to community college.

The Academic Village consists of the:

• Kingsport Center for Higher Education
  • on-site and online undergrad and grad programs based upon the combined resources of the statewide University of Tennessee system, Carson-Newman College, King College and Lincoln Memorial University as well as Northeast State Technical Community College, which manages the center.
• Regional Center for Health Professions
  • houses Northeast State's Division of Nursing and five health-related professions programs.
• Regional Center for Applied Technology
  • Computer science, business management and office administration courses from Northeast State.
• Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing
  • Supported by Eastman Chemical, whose headquarters are in Kingsport, and by paper manufacturer Domtar. Houses Eastman's training programs, Domtar's maintenance apprenticeship program and Northeast State's electrical-, mechanical- and technical- degree programs.
    

All institutions are located within a two-block radius in Kingsport.

A fifth organization, the Pal Barger School of Automotive Technology, scheduled to open in August 2010, will house Northeast State's automotive services program.

The other major component, Educate and Grow, is a first-of-its kind K-14 program that provides two-year college tuition assistance for students graduating from county high schools and emphasizes medical and technical study at the high school and college level. Area Development magazine recently profiled this innovative program.

"In economic recruiting, a community is only as attractive as its workforce," Kingsport City Manager John Campbell said. "We know we are on the right track and producing real results. The latest census data indicates a 36 percent increase in Kingsport residents with at least an associate degree from 2005 to 2008."

Eight counties in Northeast Tennessee and two counties in Southeast Virginia participate in the Regional Alliance, which teams with local and state economic development offices and the private sector. Visit the Regional Alliance website at www.alliancetnva.com for more information.

Contact: Tom Ferguson at (423) 323-8107 or at tferguson@alliancetnva.com.

Media representation: ClarkMillerCommunications.com.