VT Engage
Imagine the power of 600,000+ hours of community service performed by the Virginia Tech community and supporters of Virginia Tech!  To honor those lost April 16 and the commitment to service they demonstrated within their we invite everyone to become "engaged" in the university motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve). For information go to:
http://www.engage.vt.edu/

In addition to conceiving CarMax, Moore also created Office America, a $70 million office supply store acquired by Staples in 1994. He will speak about identifying business opportunities, strategy development and new venture creation.

“Ron has invaluable start-up experience,” VTKnowledgeWorks Director Jim Flowers said. “CarMax went from a start-up company to a Fortune 500 company in less than 10 years. We are thrilled that he will share his expertise at the technology showcase.”

The showcase highlights the 120-plus technology companies headquartered in the VTCRC, as well as established, regional companies, and provides an informal opportunity for attendees to discuss sales and marketing partnerships, research and production possibilities, and employment and investment opportunities. “Companies seeking new products, inventors, researchers, job seekers, investors and economic development professionals will all benefit,” he said.

Advance registration fees are $35 per person, which includes admission to the main exhibit area and exhibitor presentations, inclusion on the Showcase contact roster (optional), and a box lunch. Registration after Nov. 3 is $50 per person. Corporate exhibitors may purchase booth space for $250; the deadline is Oct. 19.
To register for admission tickets or corporate booth space, log on to www.vtknowledgeworks.com and click on “Technology Showcase.” For more information, e-mail Susan Higgs at shiggs@vtcrc.com.

Heartfelt congratulations from everyone at OED go out to former Economic Development Specialist Chad Miller and Ms. Susan Higgs who were wed on Saturday, October 6, 2007 in Fishersville, VA. We wish Chad and Susan the best as they embark on this new phase of their lives. The couple will reside in Hattiesburg, MS, where Chad is currently employed at Southern Mississippi State University.

Congratulations Chad and Susan!!

Rob McClintock
Masters in Urban Affairs and Planning, 1984

Rob McClintock is currently the Research Director for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) with 19 years of service to VEDP and its predecessor agency, the Virginia Department of Economic Development (VDED). He is responsible for managing the development of relevant marketing data and resources to support the business recruitment, retention, and expansion objectives of VEDP.  Key functions of the Research Division include generating custom location proposals for Virginia’s business prospects; tracking available real estate inventory throughout the Commonwealth to recommend to business prospects; producing general economic research information to advance client decision making, and supporting community and regional capacity building efforts to promote competitiveness.  He has served as Research Director since 1999...read more here

Calling all Hokies…if you’re a Virginia Tech alum working in economic development please email John Provo .  We have a special surprise in the works!

• Greetings from the Director
• Outreach NOW! Secretary of Technology’s Charge to Virginia Tech
• Asking how people and jobs come together in Alleghany-Highlands
• Re-visioning the Town of Shenandoah
• OED at work
• Partner profile: Virginia Tech Urban Affairs and Planning 
• News from the web
• Upcoming events
• Alumni spotlight
  

Our focus this month is on service---the individual and collective benefit that Virginia Tech provides the Commonwealth and its communities.  Our lead article discusses a recent on-campus showcase of projects from around the state where Virginia Tech students and faculty have worked to assist communities with economic development.  The presentations inspired Virginia’s Secretary of Technology in a keynote address to challenge us to do even more...Read Full Article

Last month, the third annual Outreach NOW conference was held at Virginia Tech. The conference created an excellent opportunity to showcase the best practices in outreach and engagement by Virginia Tech departments and centers, and reflected the university’s outstanding efforts in creating economic and social impact in communities in Virginia and around the world... Read Full Article

The Shenandoah Industrial Corporation and Page County sought help from Virginia Tech’s Office of Economic Development (OED) to develop a thoughtful and realistic approach to economic development...Read Full Article

Energy and competitiveness, what’s the connection?
The Council on Competitiveness has just released a study examining the linkages between the rising cost of energy and America’s international competitiveness. They find a drain on national productivity, as well as high energy costs leading some industries, such as steel and aluminum production, to move operations overseas. They argue that US policymakers are not acting aggressively to respond to this changed environment compared to other nations, such as European Union members, Brazil, China, and Japan.
The report is on-line here: Provoke. Discussion Draft: The Energy-Competitiveness Relationship.

Regional gross domestic product: do you really want to know how you stack up?
The US Bureau of Economic Analysis has released prototype estimates of gross domestic product by metropolitan area for all Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the US for the period 2001–2005. The GDP of a metropolitan area is defined as the market value of all final goods and services produced within that area for a given period of time, in this case annually. Get the data on-line here: http://www.bea.gov/regional/index.htm.

The US Economic Census, It’s not just for numbers geeks anymore!
At business.census.gov you will find a new look underscoring an outreach effort to businesses to participate in the survey and utilize the website to find information about their respective industry.  Follow the tab “How are businesses using this kind of information?” and find out how business can use the economic census data to scope out the competition, calculate their market share, find potential customers, and evaluate new opportunities and locations.  Local governments can also use the data to research their tax base, support economic development initiatives, and guide public policy decisions. 

Ted Settle, OED director, and Dave Nutter, OED economic development specialist, continue to work on implementation of the existing distributed research center focused on nuclear energy in Lynchburg, as well as a new center focused on energy research in far Southwest Virginia. Ted continues to work with new commercialization specialists employed by Virginia Tech and the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville to help move research into the marketplace. He is also currently working on a project with Kevin Creehan in the Center for High Performance Manufacturing on best practices in product development for small manufacturers.

Sibel Atasoy, OED economic development associate, Dick Daugherty, director of Virginia Tech’s Business Technology Center, and OED graduate assistant Mike Potter, are nearing completion of a business plan and feasibility study for a proposed Appalachian Agricultural Exposition Center in Wytheville.  Sibel and Jim Pease, faculty in Virginia Tech’s Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, along with Dick Salmon, faculty in the School of Education, are wrapping up an economic impact study of a proposed Wise County power plant. 

Just underway, John Provo, OED senior economic development specialist, Dave Nutter, and Dick Daugherty, are conducting a nanotechnology cluster study for the Virginia Nanotechnology Park proposed by Pulaski Town and County.  Sibel Atasoy and OED graduate assistant Boris Bruk began work this month on an employee satisfaction survey for Hill-Phoenix, a Colonial Heights-based manufacturer. 

Virginia Tech’s Urban Affairs and Planning (UAP) program provides interdisciplinary teaching and learning, research and scholarship, and outreach and service, in planning and public policy.  The faculty is located at Virginia Tech’s main campus in Blacksburg, as well as the Alexandria Center located in the heart of metropolitan Washington DC...Read Article

We will continue to invent the future through our blood and tears and through all our sadness.... We will prevail....