Six people from Hall County are among the graduates of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development's regional training program.
Class participants represented a number of professional and non-professional economic development fields, including elected officials, public servants, business leaders, educators, and social service providers from 12 counties in Region 2 Georgia. The
Hall County graduates are Cheryl Jones, Logan Jones, Nick Swafford, Myron Bennett, Fassil Fanta, and Jeff Jenkins.
Created in 1993, the Academy assembles a cross section of economic development professionals and resources to provide this training in all twelve service delivery regions in Georgia. Georgia EMC and Georgia Power provide facilitators for the program, and the Georgia Department of Community Affairs provides staff support.
“One of the goals for the multi-day regional Academies is to encourage multi-county cooperation,” says Corinne Thornton, Director of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development. “Many times the participants discover the issues facing their community are the same as those facing other communities in their region, and can then combine limited resources to address the issue.”
The Academy’s multi-day program, taught one day a month over a four-month period, includes training in the basics of economic and community development, plus specialized segments on business recruitment and retention, tourism product development, downtown development, planning, and other essentials for community success. In addition, the curriculum features specific leadership skills.
The next Region 2 Georgia Academy for Economic Development will begin in August 2019. For more information, contact Kathy Papa at 770-362-7078 or by email at [email protected].
