Economic Opportunities 2015 (EcO15)
CONNECTING DEARBORN COUNTY
RESIDENTS TO ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY THROUGH EDUCATION BY
2015
 A
$38 million education and training grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
to The Heritage Fund-The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County
and the Community Education Coalition in Columbus is expected to
bring more $900,000 in grants for a regionally-focused initiative
called Economic Opportunities through Education by 2015
(EcO15). The grants are assisting Community Foundations in
funding educational programs associated with Advanced
Manufacturing, Healthcare, and Hospitality/Tourism for 10
Southeastern Indiana counties including Dearborn County.
The Dearborn Community Foundation Inc. (DCF) expects to receive
more than $900,000 over a three-year period to fund an Economic
Opportunities 2015 (EcO15) coordinator and administrative assistant
positions and to support and expand educational programs associated
with Advanced Manufacturing, Healthcare, and Hospitality/Tourism in
the county.
The EcO15 programs will teach skills needed for an influx of jobs
primarily in advanced manufacturing but also in healthcare services
and hospitality and tourism in the Southeastern Indiana region.
Among growing advanced-manufacturing job opportunities in the
10-county region are a Honda automobile manufacturing plant in
Greensburg and a new engine manufacturing operation at Cummins in
Columbus.
Advanced Manufacturing is
the value-added combination of people, processes, and
products, which remains competitive in a high-wage
environment in the pursuit of continuous improvement.
Advanced Manufacturing is the major economic cluster in
SE Indiana, therefore, the major focus of the
initiative. To meet the workforce needs of today’s
manufacturers, EcO15 and the national Dream It. Do It.
Campaign are helping to develop resources for both
educators and students to increase manufacturing job
readiness skills. Resources include relevant, work-based
learning institutions, such as Middle School, High
School, Career tech, Adult basic education and
certification centers, Ivy Tech Community College,
IUPUC, and Purdue College of Technology.
Healthcare is the next most important industry sector
to Southeastern Indiana, employing more than 10% of the
region’s workforce.
To meet the needs of the healthcare industry, a Regional
Clinical Simulation System was formed to address the
need for more-and better trained-healthcare providers.
The RCSS will provide high fidelity simulations for
healthcare educational programs. The RCSS will be
available to secondary and post-secondary students
and/or employees of healthcare organizations who are
providing opportunities for employees to upgrade their
professional skills for advancement and promotion.
DCF’s Mark Neff is the EcO15 Coordinator for Dearborn
County. DCF has established an EcO15 Task Force
representing professionals in the areas education,
manufacturing, healthcare services, and
hospitality/tourism to guide the EcO15 program in
Dearborn County.
Dearborn County Workforce
Statistical Information
Dearborn County’s EcO15 Initiative is all about
connecting residents of Dearborn County through
high-tech and high-touch programs to explore career
pathways in fields that drive our regional economy. An
interesting component of the initiative was to create a
summer college intern position to work directly with the
EcO15 Coordinator. Since intern Kelsey McMullen joined
the DCF team, she has researched data sources and
compiled a data base that expresses various components
of our county’s workforce. DCF hopes the data base will
be used as a tool for promoting economic development and
employment opportunities from inside as well as outside
our community. Please click below to view the workforce
statistical information.
Click here
for Workforce Statistics
Click Here to visit the EcO15
website(www.eco15.org)
To learn more about the EcO15
initiative in Dearborn County, contact Mark Neff at:
Dearborn Community Foundation, Inc.
322 Walnut Street
Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
(812)539-4115 phone
markneff52@hotmail.com
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