Helping Communities Shine

Whether researching and implementing ways to shape a community's economic development plan or partnering to create ways to put people to work, CREC connects researchers and policymakers with:

     • Data training
     • Custom portfolios that aid regional competitiveness

Project Profile

Texoma Regional Consortium Cluster Study & Strategic Plan

Texoma Workforce Development Board
Start Date: Feb 2006 — End Date: Oct 2007

C2ER/CREC worked with the Corporation for a Skilled Workforce to identify critical industry clusters in a thirteen-county region of Texas and Oklahoma.

The area has been significantly impacted by job losses in manufacturing and is seeking a new economic focus at the same time that it tries to retain its rural tradition. C2ER/CREC facilitated working group sessions of key stakeholders and companies to begin building cluster networks and to identify ways to develop emerging and potential clusters in the region.

Regional leaders sought to encourage the creation of “Hometown Hotspots” designed to support entrepreneurship and innovation as a key factor in developing the region’s economic future. Area institutions of higher education – four-year universities and two-year colleges played a critical role in achieving a new economic vision for the area.

About the Client

Texoma Workforce Development Board

The Texoma Workforce Development Board is a volunteer board, which oversees the delivery of employment and training programs in the Texoma Workforce Development Area. Comprised of Cooke, Fannin and Grayson Counties, the Texoma Workforce Development Area covers 2,700 square miles and is home to more than 180,000 people.