Fentress County sharpening its competitive edge for industrial recruitment and workforce retention with the opening of a new $25 million higher education campus.
Fentress County Executive Jacob Rosenbaum said TCAT and Roane State Community College serve as active partners in economic development by participating in regular meetings with prospective employers.
“It means that our young people do not have to leave Fentress County to attain higher education. That is tremendous for our local economy,” Rosenbaum said. “That gives folks two more years at least longer to develop themselves.”
Rosenbaum said TCAT and Roane State design and implement custom programs for students to train for new companies while their physical facilities are still under construction in the area.
“Education and workforce development are not exactly the same thing, but they are essentially the same thing, and having more access to higher education in our community, it’s absolutely a game changer,” Rosenbaum said. “It’s the best thing that’s happened to Fentress County since Sergeant York built York Institute.”
Rosenbaum said the county is increasingly being scouted by tech companies and manufacturers of small parts that require skilled labor rather than heavy water usage. Rosenbaum said the campus specifically prepares workers for these roles through programs in welding, computer technology, and other specialized fields.
“Whenever you grow up in a small rural town, the way of life is just ingrained in you,” Rosenbaum said. “And so generally, as I would say is a general rule, young people who grow up here, they want to stay here. Their parents are here. Their grandparents are here. I’m in the same boat. My entire family lives here in Fentress County. And most of us would prefer to live here and raise our own family in this environment in our hometown around our family. You just have to make that a possibility. And that’s what this higher education campus is doing for Fentress County.”
Rosenbaum said the Tennessee College of Applied Technology has a history of building ground-up training modules to meet the exact needs of specific employers. Rosenbaum said this model is currently utilized by Volkswagen in Hamilton County and can be replicated for businesses in the Upper Cumberland.
“It gives local employers who are already established greater access to skilled workers,” Rosenbaum said. “It means that they can offer more competitive wages. It means that they don’t have to look as hard or go for as long without filling key positions because there’s a larger pool of prospective applicants. So it’s a big boost for established local businesses as well.”
Rosenbaum said the long-term success of the $25 million investment will be measured by demographic shifts within the county. Rosenbaum said he will monitor enrollment trends in local primary and secondary schools to determine if more families are choosing to stay in the area.
“So whenever we start to see these numbers filter down into increasing our primary and secondary school enrollment numbers, that’s when we’ll know we are about to cross the threshold,” Rosenbaum said.
