UT CIS’s EDA University Center Surveying Counties

The UT CIS Economic Development Team is surveying economic development leaders in Tennessee’s distressed and at-risk counties about the impacts that the pandemic has had on their economic development needs and goals. The goal is to connect communities to the extensive resources of the University of Tennessee’s statewide campuses and institutes to provide technical assistance to address needs and improve economic resiliency.  Assistance could include integrating resiliency into economic development plans, providing support to business and industry to expand market opportunities and enhance competitiveness, providing economic development training to community and government leaders, assessing community emergency preparedness and continuity plans and other types of University-based support.   

This work is supported by the US Department of Commerce’s EDA University Center program and builds on ongoing collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development and the state’s Development Districts to help communities develop and implement asset-based goals for economic development and provides a framework to address new challenges presented by the pandemic.  For more information, contact Kathy Barber.