News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The new Director of Workforce Development and Education at the Highlands Economic Partnership says she has big shoes to fill.
Kaitlin Salyer is taking over the office after Lillian Hartgrove’s retirement after 12 years as Director. Salyer said she feels like she’s replacing a legend.
“The programs she was able to build both in Economic Development where she started, and in Workforce Development and Education where she ended her time here, she is renowned,” Salyer said. “You go to a nation-wide conference, and they are familiar with her and her work.”
After working for three years under Hartgrove, Salyer said she has mixed feelings about taking over as director.
“The transition has been bittersweet,” Salyer said. “Her retirement, while I have been super excited about the promotion and the opportunity to continue these programs, it’s sad because she’s retired and not here. I’ve loved working with her, but I want to see our programs continue with some of the momentum she’s built. I think we will be able to do that. We have some absolutely phenomenal partners, and a great deal of that is because she worked hard at the beginning to establish those relationships.”
The Highlands Economic Partnership was launched by the Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce. It is a collaborative public/private partnership designed to boost economic and community development in Jackson, Overton, Putnam, and White counties.
In addition to maintaining the momentum Hartgrove began as director, Salyer said she hopes, while taking over, to start new programs to attract highly skilled labor to the local workforce.
“We’re looking at new approaches to address the workforce needs in our area,” Salyer said. “The biggest one now we are transitioning is a workforce recrutiment plan. So not only are we working to build the pipeline, but you also have these very skilled, very talented individuals in the workforce already. They just may not be here in our area. So how do we get them here? We have incredible towns and communities in our region, and I think it will be a lot of fun to promote those and promote our jobs. We can promote our quality education we have and the great K-12 schools we have. We have some incredible higher education institutions. I think it will be easy to sell the Upper Cumberland and specifically the counties we work with on a daily basis.”
Salyer said she loves workforce development, especially the way the Highlands Economic Partnership approaches it, because it allows her to bring multiple facets together to accomplish something that benefits workers in the community.
“I love the approach we’ve taken here,” Salyer said. “It’s not just one singular focus that we have. We look at it from an education standpoint. We look at our youth. We ask, ‘How can we ensure they are prepared to be quality workers one day?’ I love how that ties into if you have quality workers, you have a strong economy. You have businesses that are wanting to move to the area because you have a workforce that can provide for them. It’s just a robust approach we take to make sure that every element working together.”
