News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Two goals identified by Jackson County leaders in their ThreeStar grant proposal will be further explored by county leaders.
The first, recruit an IT-based employer and, second, recruit a workforce who would like to work from home.
Mayor Randy Heady said the county is a good fit being a gig speed county, with Twin Lakes based in Gainesboro. Heady said workforce development for tech jobs could be huge.
“The people coming out of high school or we have adult individuals going to post-secondary school,” Heady said. “Getting a degree that would help them be able to get a degree and go right to work in these IT based opportunities.”
Heady said the ground work starts with TCAT and other local entities to enhance IT based learning. Heady said he imagines the employer could be a call center or co-work space.
“TCAT, we’re trying to schedule and set up a way that we can to be more IT based, have an IT based class let me say that,” Heady said. “We do offer that and we do offer partnering with TCAT-Livingston and we’re going to look at other opportunities to partner with other entities to build that workforce so that we have something here.”
During the ThreeStar process, a fitness center was picked as a piece towards bettering the health of the workforce that exists and recruiting employees that want a healthy lifestyle.
Heady said the county is seeing residents who want a work from home career, but wants to have more to offer them.
“We’re being infiltrated with those so that recruitment is not really that hard to do,” Heady said. “We just put out there and let people know that we are a gig community, Twin Lakes provided. We have 100 percent fiber in the county.”
Heady said the county has restaurants, outdoor recreation and a strong downtown to welcome in employers and employees. He said the fitness center will be a step towards checking the boxes this generation looks at when relocating for employment.
