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Improved math, reading will better chances of employment

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Economic Development

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June 10, 2010

Sometimes getting a job requires training in the basics.The Workforce Development Center, a new project offered at the Northside Association for Community Development in cooperation with Kalamazoo Valley Community College, will offer such training.Mattie Jordan-Woods, the NACD's executive director, says she knows skilled technicians in automotive mechanics and other trades who lack the basic math and reading skills to gain certification in those professions.  In the one-year pilot program, participants will learn about a variety of jobs and what it requires to apply for them. They will determine their existing skills and what skills they need to better qualify for employment. They also will be able to create a customized learning program for each student.Participants will be able to learn at their own pace and one-on-one tutoring will be available. "It will get people on the path to a job," Jordan-Woods says. "For people to work themselves out of a low-income or poverty situation, they need to have solid math, writing and reading skills."William Willging from the M-TEC of KVCC will oversee the project.Two tutors will be based at the NACD, located at 612 N. Park St., to provide one-on-one, computer-based instructions that will raise the basic mathematics and reading skills of neighborhood residents.The training is free to all participants. It is funded by a $7,000 grant from the Kalamazoo Community Foundation.      KVCC President Marilyn Schlack says she sees the Workforce Development Center as a stepping stone to what is being envisioned in the evolving Arcadia Commons West concept for the redevelopment of downtown Kalamazoo, and a positive influence on adjacent Kalamazoo-core neighborhoods.Among the missions of the NACD are job creation, neighborhood revitalization, and financial independence for residents. Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Tom Thinnes, Kalamazoo Valley Community College

College leaders band together to evaluate programs

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Economic Development

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June 10, 2010

By working together the presidents of six Southwest Michigan community colleges and Western Michigan University expect to create stronger higher education opportunities for students across the region.To foster that cooperation, they have formed a consortium.An example of the type of programs that may grow out of the consortium are two pilot dual-enrollment programs serving aviation and engineering students at Kellogg Community College who plan to earn bachelor's degrees from WMU. This program has launched in the past 18 months.Similar programs and opportunities are already in stages of formation and implementation with the other community college partners.The consortium partners are: • Dr. G. Edward Haring, president, Kellogg Community College;• Dr. Robert P. Harrison, president, Lake Michigan College;• Dr. David M. Mathews, president, Southwestern Community College;• Dr. Dale K. Nesbary, president, Muskegon Community College;• Dr. Marilyn J. Schlack, president, Kalamazoo Valley Community College; and• Dr. Gary Wheeler, president, Glen Oaks Community College.Next comes a series of meetings between officials at the individual community colleges and WMU, in which specific academic programs and ventures will be examined and tailored to the needs of students."We all agree that there is potential for enormous benefit to our students if, as a group, we are thoughtful and creative about how we leverage existing resources to meet the needs of the populations we serve," Dunn says. "This is our commitment to work closely together to ensure students have the opportunities they need to realize their goals." Writer: Kathy Jennings Source: Cheryl Roland,  WMU

Growing jobs is economic development, too

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Economic Development

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June 10, 2010

It's time to pay as much attention to helping local businesses grow as is spent seeking out new businesses, business leaders told columnist Rick Hagland.Business experts say economic gardening could provide a richer, more stable source of jobs for the state.Excerpt: Michigan shouldn't abandon efforts to bring new companies to Michigan, said Rob Fowler, president of the Small Business Association of Michigan."We don't think it should be either/or," he said. "But 60 to 80 percent of the state's economic development efforts should be put into economic gardening."Figures compiled by the Cassopolis-based Edward Lowe Foundation, which develops educational programs for entrepreneurs, show that small, "second-stage" companies produced more jobs in the 15-year period between 1993 and 2007 than any other business segment in the state.Second-stage companies are those that employ between 10 and 100 workers, have annual sales of at least $1 million and want to grow, according to the Lowe Foundation's definition.These businesses created 137,249 jobs in Michigan between 1993 and 2007, while companies employing 500 or more workers shed 257,585 jobs in the same time period.For more on growing businesses, read the rest of the story.Source: Rick Haglund for Mlive

Biosciences pick up momentum in Michigan

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Technology & Innovation

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June 10, 2010

From 2006 to 2008 Michigan's bioscience industry added 3,300 jobs, faster than the national average, reports Business Review West Michigan.National trade group BIO in its biannual report said the industry directly employed 37,180 people as of two years ago, growing nearly 10 percent from 2006 in jobs.The industry pays an average annual wage of $76,394.The BIO report ranked Michigan 10th nationally in bioscience research and development in 2008, 13th in clinical trials initiated in 2009, and 18th in venture capital investments and 17th in related patents from 2004 to 2009. Excerpt: Across Michigan, research, testing and medical labs remained the largest and fastest-growing industry subsector from 2006 to 2008, growing by 18.5 percent, or nearly 2,500 jobs, and adding 85 new companies. MichBio, the industry's trade association in Michigan, attributed the growth in research, testing and medical labs to start-up companies formed out of corporate downsizings at pharmaceutical and device companies, coupled with a growing need for diagnostic and medical testing for health care providers. The medical device and equipment subsector added more than 1,300 jobs from 2006 to 2008, an 11.9 percent increase. For more study results, see the entire story. Source: Business Review West Michigan

Kalamazoo Promise is more than a scholarship program

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Economic Development

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June 10, 2010

Education and economic development go hand-in-hand. Kalamazoo-area economic development leader Ron Kitchens explained the concept to representatives from the national news corp, including NBC and FOX news, in town June 7 for President Barack Obama's address to the 2010 graduating class from Kalamazoo Central High School.He talked to reporters all day. His message: the area's focus on education as a sound growth strategy.Excerpt:Of The Kalamazoo Promise, the free college tuition program for Kalamazoo Public Schools graduates, he said, "'They asked, 'Isn't it just a scholarship program?''""People don't understand education as a strategy of economic development," said Kitchens, who is president and chief executive officer of Southwest Michigan First, the area's lead economic development organization. "It really is about putting our financial resources into our natural resources."For more on Kitchens' message read the entire story.Source: Kalamazoo Gazette

Resale shop helps those in need

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Community Development

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June 9, 2010

A resale shop that donates its proceeds to an emergency shelter has moved into bigger quarters, reports the Herald-Palladium.The move to 510 W. Main St. in Benton Harbor triples the space available to 6 Degrees Resale Store, according to manager Sally Sovinski. Excerpt: "We were very packed, so we moved to a much bigger space," she said. Emergency Shelter Services, at 645 Pipestone St. in Benton Harbor, provides housing and other services for families who otherwise would be homeless. Proceeds from 6 Degrees Resale Store support the work of ESS. Client families in need of items such as clothing or furniture can pay for them by working at the store. In addition to helping ESS clients learn job skills, the store employs workers through the Michigan Works Jobs, Education and Training (JET) Program. For details on a fundraiser for 6 Degrees Resale Store set for June 10, read the rest of the story. Source: Herald-Palladium

St. Joseph sponsors a summer of dog gone fun

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Economic Development

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June 3, 2010

Dogs from the past and the future were part of the fun when St. Joseph unleashed its summer public art display, Hot Diggity Dogs. Think Dyno-Mutt in a dinosaur costume and a mechanized Robo Dog solar panel and you'll get the picture. The dogs will remain downtown until Oct. 1.Some, like artist James O'Haver of St. Joseph, dressed for the occasion the day the dogs went on display. O'Haver in overcoat and deerstalker cap matched his creation, the basset hound Sherlock Hound. Numbers on the statue's base read 221, a tip of the deerstalker cap to 221 Baker St., the home of fictional detective Sherlock Holmes.Excerpt: "I'm a Sherlock Holmes fan, along with Hercule Poirot and other British mystery genre that's on television," O'Haver said. "I really love that stuff. I loved the whole idea of doing one of the animals as Sherlock Hound."O'Haver said initially he wasn't going to do Sherlock Hound, but when he came downtown and learned there was no address between neighboring Marie's Hallmark at 219 State and Signal Travel and Tours at 223 State, he couldn't resist. There had to be a 221, he said."I thought that would add a little mystery to it, and I thought of doing Sherlock Hound on a base that has 221 - the missing address," said O'Haver, an artist with a studio at the Box Factory for the Arts. "I seem to be creating a quite little stir. The costume helps a little bit, but the kids like the idea of Sherlock Holmes."For more information on St. Joseph's sixth year as sponsor of a downtown public art project, read the entire story.Source: Herald-Palladium

Life EMS completes $2 million expansion project in Kalamazoo

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Health

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June 3, 2010

Leaders of Life EMS Ambulance service have shown renewed commitment to the Kalamazoo area with a $2 million expansion and renovation of its property on the city's North Side.Mark Meijer, president of Grand Rapids-based business said the company was glad to be a part of the community.Excerpt:"We're primarily thankful every day for the trust that Kalamazoo and Portage puts in us and our medics in providing these critical services," Meijer said.Life EMS has a service contract with a consortium of area governments including the city of Kalamazoo, Oshtemo Township, Parchment and Cooper Township.Its workers operated for most of the past year out of the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety's former station at North Rose Street while its offices on North Street were being expanded from about 6,500 square feet to 18,170 square feet.Life EMS, which started with two ambulances and about eight workers serving the Kalamazoo area, now has about 80 workers here who utilize 14 paramedic transport vehicles and 10 wheelchair transport vans.For more on the dedication of the property at  517 E. North St., read the entire story. Source: Kalamazoo Gazette

Increase in tourism expected to heat up summer business in South Haven

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Economic Development

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June 3, 2010

Last summer leasing agents in South Haven reduced rental rates in anticipation of a season slowed by harsh economics. Those days are gone, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette. Already, Shores Vacation Rental in South Haven has seen a 3 percent increase in bookings over last year. Other rental firms in the city also report bookings are up over last year. Statewide, tourism travel is expected to increase 2 percent over last year while spending is expected to rise 3 percent. Excerpt: The South Haven/Van Buren County Convention & Visitors Bureau also is encouraged by early season indicators, such as the 30 percent increase in traffic on the bureau's website this year over the same period in 2009, said Lisa Shanley, executive director of the bureau. "A lot of those turn into actual visitors," Shanley said. "We're very optimistic about this year."           The Southwest Michigan Tourist Council markets hotels, resorts and other tourist activities in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.  The office has been flooded with calls from people from North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida and other southern states inquiring about vacationing in Southwest Michigan, said Millicent Huminsky, the council's executive director. The reason? The massive oil slick lapping on the shores of several Gulf states that are home to popular tourists sites.  "We've gotten calls from all over," Huminsky said. "People are looking for clean water and clean beaches. I feel bad about the disaster down there, but it actually might help us." Information on vacancies at local marinas also is reported in the story. Source: Kalamazoo Gazette

The Golf Club at Harbor Shores to host Senior PGA Championship

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Economic Development

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June 3, 2010

Communities that host a Senior PGA tournament typically realize an average of at least $22 million economic benefit from the event. So there were a lot of happy people when Benton Harbor and St. Joseph heard they would host the event in 2012 and 2014.The prestigious event will take place at The Golf Club at Harbor Shores, an 18 hole public Jack Nicklaus Signature Course, located in the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph area. Whirlpool Corporation's KitchenAid brand will serve as presenting sponsor of the Senior PGA Championship from 2011 through 2014.The announcement, made as a part of the 2010 Senior PGA Championship, was shared locally via a live feed with local officials and the media. "We look forward to the chance to have the eyes of the world on our communities," says City of St. Joseph Mayor Bob Judd. "It provides us the opportunity to share the many amenities that make our community and the entire region Michigan's Great Southwest." Harbor Shores is a 530-acre mixed use real estate development with an estimated 20 year build out. Plans for Harbor Shores include  a variety of distinctive neighborhoods with varying residential product totaling nearly 720 residences. The plans also call for a wide array of recreational amenities, including a town center, deep water marinas, retail shops and restaurants and recreational trails.In addition to the projected economic impact, Cornerstone Alliance Chairman of the Board Ken Kozminski says hosting such a prestigious event creates endless opportunities for Cornerstone's ongoing economic development efforts.  "This gives our community and the entire state the opportunity to showcase the community to new investors and job providers as we work to grow jobs in the area. New companies locate in communities that have a vision for positive change, that is what we have here," Kozminsk says.Writer: Kathy JenningsSource: Jamie Nilson-Balkin, Cornerstone Alliance