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October 2014Governor’s Office of Appalachiaappalachia.development.ohio.govW O R K I N G T O I M P R O V E T H E L I V E S O F O H I O AN S L I V I N G I N T H E 3 2 - C O U N T Y R E G I O NInnovation and Renovation to Advance RegionalEconomic Development in Southeast OhioTri-County Adult Career Center and Hocking College aremore than just neighbors in Athens County; they are partnerswho will soon be breaking ground on a shared renovationproject to serve the business community in southeast Ohio.According to Kim McKinley, director of Tri-County AdultCareer Center, the two institutions have a long history ofworking together to streamline the education pipeline foradults. Because of this success, McKinley had a vision thatthe two institutions could do the same thing to better servearea businesses.“Few people outside of education know that both collegesand career centers have, as part of their mission, the goal ofassisting businesses and organizations with their internalstaff trainings. In our region, it didn’t make sense for theCareer Center and the College to be competing for trainingcontracts. Instead of helping businesses, we were confusingthem.”McKinley found an enthusiasticpartner in former President ofHocking College, Dr. RonErickson. Their innovativepartnership, formalized in late2012, creates a collaborative,rather than competitive,relationship to expand staff trainingand professional developmentopportunities to area businesses.The College and Career Centershare a workforce training officeand present themselves as oneentity, The Business TrainingCenter, to the businesscommunity. Having a single pointof contact streamlines the processfor area businesses that arelooking for staff training anddevelopment.The big news? The partners are breaking ground this fall ona new home for The Business Training Center. A state-of-the-art training facility will be the major focus of HockingCollege’s renovation plan for the former Inn at HockingCollege. It will include a computer lab, Pearson VUEprofessional testing center, board room, and multi-use,flexible training spaces. Funds for the renovation will comefrom the recent capital appropriation, a collaborativeeffort spearheaded by Governor John Kasich.Tri-County Adult Career Center also has secured anAppalachian Regional Commission grant that will be used toequip the center with computers, video conferencing, andother high tech equipment. Co-located with HockingCollege’s Hospitality program, business clients will have theadvantage of on-site catering for trainings and specialevents. Story continues on page 3A rendering of the new Business Training Center by Feinknopf Macioce Schappa Architects

Heating assistance is available to eligible households starting November 1 until March 31, 2015 through theHEAP Winter Crisis Program. The program provides assistance to eligible households that are threatenedwith disconnection, have been disconnected or have less than a 10-day supply of bulk fuel.Director Wilson Represents Ohio at the Appalachian Regional CommissionMeeting in AlabamaIn October, Director Wilson traveled toFlorence, Alabama for the fall meetingof the Appalachian RegionalCommission. This annual meeting is atime for the representatives of the 13states to discuss best practices andthe upcoming initiatives for theCommission.A key topic for the conference washow to reduce the amount of youthout-migration. Out-migration is whenstudents or families leave onecommunity for another, many timesmoving from a small community tolarger community. During themeeting, the representativesdiscussed how to improvecommunities and job opportunities toretain young people in the region.The Governor’s Office of Appalachiamade workforce development andinfrastructure investments two of itstop priorities this year.Before leaving Alabama, DirectorWilson sat down with ScottHamilton, the new Executive DirectorAnother part of the annual meeting is of the Appalachian Regionala community service project. This year Commission. He joined theCommission in September. This wasthe project focused on two highhis first official meeting with all theschools in the area, Phil Campbellrepresentatives of the Commission.and Hackleburg High Schools. Thetwo schools were devastated by atornado in 2011. The group toured the Before joining the ARC, he waspresident and CEO of AdvantageWestrenovated buildings before plantingEconomic Development Group, atrees outside the schools.nonprofit regional economicdevelopment organization that hasserved the western region of NorthCarolina. Scott will work with the 13member states to help buildsustainable communities andeconomic development in theAppalachia region.Jason Wilson, director of theGovernor’s Office of Appalachia.“In Ohio, we are working to streamline our workforce training programs,improve access to education andinvest in local communities to makethem more attractive for our stuJim Byard State Alternate for Alabama,dents. We need to ensure that students from the Appalachian region in Director Jason Wilson, and Earl Gohl, ARC CoChairOhio see it as a good place to liveand a region of opportunity,” saidThe next meeting for the AppalachianRegional Commission will be held inearly 2015.Next month we’ll have more informationon out-migration in Ohio

Interning in the Governor’s Office ofAppalachiaInnovation and Renovation.continued from page 1Most people would not expect a farm girl from HolmesCounty, Ohio to have an interest in government affairs.But I do. I’m Hayley Kick, an intern in the Governor’sOffice of Appalachia. Dinner at my house wasinterrupted by a county commissioner, township trustee,or my school district’s superintendent at least once aweek because they wanted to speak with my dad, along-standing member of the local school board.Although I did not always enjoy jumping up from thedining table when the doorbell rang, I was inspired bythese leaders and their dedication to our community.My interest in governmentaffairs and communityoutreach led me to applyfor the college internshipin the Governor’s Office ofAppalachia. My internshipstarted in August and bythe end of my first week, Iwas already helpingprepare grant proposalsfor administrativeDirector Wilson with Hayley Kickreview. Gaining first-handexperience in the grantreview process was an exciting opportunity, especiallyknowing that a few of the projects would help makehealth care more accessible to families in Appalachia.The Governor’s Office of Appalachia is committed toimproving the lives of all Ohioans living in AppalachianOhio, and I am extremely grateful to be a part of it. Thisinternship is teaching me how to navigate a dynamicoffice environment. I hope to see more Appalachianstudents applying for this position in the future so theymay utilize their unique talents, ideas, and experiencesto create successful initiatives in Appalachian Ohio.An exterior view of the Inn at Hocking College, the newhome of the Business Training CenterThe business-centric facility will be the first of its kind inthe area. McKinley and Erickson view The BusinessTraining Center as an investment in the businesscommunity that will provide the region with increasedcapacity to retain and expand existing businesses aswell as attract new companies to southeast Ohio.Progress on the Business Training Center would not bepossible without the unwavering support of SenatorsTroy Balderson and Lou Gentile, State RepresentativeDebbie Phillips, the Appalachian Regional Commission,and Misty Casto and her team at Buckeye Hills-HockingValley Regional Development District.Students interested in applying for theGovernor’s Office of Appalachia internship shouldsend their resume and cover letter toappalachia@development.ohio.govor call 614) 644-9228.Find out more at: https://veteransbonus.ohio.gov/odvs web/, or contact your County Veterans ServiceOffice.