NWKF believes that education excellence and lifelong learning are essential for a competitive workforce. Our goal is to encourage involvement and support for schools to foster excellence. The following are two accounts of unique initiatives occurring in Northwest Kentucky schools:
Ellie Wright, Education and Workforce Coordinator, recently visited 3 Union County Elementary schools with UCPS Superintendent Josh Powell. Among the impressive sights, seeing 2nd graders who are learning to speak Chinese. Not only were they counting to 100 in Chinese, but the teacher was speaking almost exclusively in Chinese to the students!
Also, the most recent NWKF board meeting was held in the library at McLean County High School. A presentation was made on the school’s new dual-enrollment program with a local college. Nearly one-third of all seniors are enrolled in dual credit courses earning credits towards both high school diplomas and college!
The Existing Business arm of NWKF recently conducted a survey of our existing businesses. This survey covered the 133 companies in the four-county region which could potentially apply for incentives under Kentucky primary economic development incentive programs.
The survey measured current and future economic trends among these companies. NWKF Existing Business Manager, Cj Maple, worked with a group of existing businesses to find out what they wanted to know and what questions they wanted asked. As a result, more than 65% of companies responded!
Overall, the picture for businesses in NWKY is very positive. But don’t just take my word for it, you can view the survey results yourself.
Governor Steve Beshear was in the Henderson on Friday to announce that Rio Tinto Alcan, which operates a large aluminum smelter in southern Henderson County, has been approved for $15 million in incentives.
The incentives are to encourage RTA to move forward with a planned $50 million reinvestment that would secure the facility for the long-term. The smelter which employs more than 500 high wage positions is arguably the most important economic engine in this region.
Most of the incentives are in the form of state corporate income tax credits made available through the new Kentucky Reinvestment Act (KRA) which the General Assembly approved last June. NWKF had strongly lobbied for this program for several years and praised its passage as key to future growth and opportunities.
NWKF congratulates RTA on this announcement and looks forward to continuing to work with them.
KAN, the Kentucky Aluminum Network, has been asked to testify before the Kentucky Senate’s Natural Resources and Energy Committee this Wednesday. We are excited to again have an opportunity to tell Aluminum’s story and how important it is to the state to Kentucky’s leaders.
KAN is an association of aluminum producers, processors, suppliers and supporters that has recently been formed to promote the Aluminum industry in Kentucky. Aluminum employs nearly 15,000 in the Commonwealth and pays more than $100 million in taxes. Aluminum production in Kentucky represents approximately 1/3 of the nation’s AL production.
Governor Beshear will be in Henderson on Friday at 11:30 for an exciting announcement. We will post more in the coming days but please join us at the Sullivan Technology Center at Henderson Community College on Friday!
NWKF again partnered with Henderson County High School to sponsor a community open house for the school’s Career & Technical Unit. A “sleeping giant”, the CTU is one of the largest technical/vocational training programs in the Commonwealth with well more than 1000 students taking classes each year.
NWKF works with the school to make sure that 1) the business community is aware of the programs available in the CTU, 2) that the school communicates with the businesses on what their needs are and ensuring they are producing graduates with the necessary skills and 3) that parents understand the opportunities available to their children in the CTU.
NWKF looks forward to continuing to partner with all of our schools to make sure that we are pursuing excellence and providing opportunities for all students.
I am speaking today to the Green River Area Development District Board of Directors. GRADD is the 7–county regional planning entity for Northwest Kentucky.
I am going to focus on 4 project/initiatives of Northwest Kentucky Forward:
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Is economic development a zero sum game? Is there only one winner and many losers? Can areas partner together yet still be competitors?
At Northwest Kentucky Forward, we think the answer to all of these questions is YES! NWKF is working with the Greater Owensboro EDC, the Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana, Richland County (IL) Development Corp, along with other partners in a new initiative call Regional Economic Network.
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The Business Retention effort currently is surveying our businesses on the business environment and their plans for the future. Already, more than 62% of our businesses have responded! If you would like to participate, please contact Cj Maple for a link to the survey site.
Over the next few weeks, Northwest Kentucky Forward will be marketing the region to prospective companies and consultants at shows in Las Vegas and in a mission to Montreal, with consultant calls planned for Chicago and the Washington, DC, area.
Northwest Kentucky has a great story to tell and we are committed to getting the word out to businesses on the opportunities available in this region!