The Southwest Virginia Partnership is cultivating a strong base for SW Virginia's new economy through a number of important projects and programs. A sampling of those is listed below.
Energy
Energy Research Centers
The Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission recently established five energy research centers, two of which are located in Southwest Virginia. The University is taking a leading role in supporting these centers by identifying research that can be extended to Abingdon and Wise, involves corporate partners, and has promising commercialization potential. We held a workshop for interested faculty and invited the center directors to share their priorities and critical project elements. It is our intention to propose applied research projects that are: relevant to the area and energy-based, address a business concern, engage area students, consider workforce training, leverage other funding mechanisms, and have the potential to lead to new job creation. We have been working with our community partners extensively on several of these projects, including three described here:
Algae Research
Energy has long been an integral part of the Southwest
Virginia economy. U.Va. researchers Lisa Colosi and Andres
Clarens (Civil and Environmental Engineering) and
Mark White (Commerce) are investigating how algae can
be used to address two energy problems of national significance:
sequestering carbon from coal-fired power plants
and producing a new source of fuel. Developing Southwest
Virginia-based solutions to these problems will support
existing companies and stimulate the development of new
enterprises. One distinctive aspect of this team is the pairing
of business and technology expertise to examine the
investigation’s financial feasibility during each stage of
research.
Coal has long been an economic driver for Southwest
Virginia and will continue to play a major role for decades.
Energy companies in the region are looking for ways to
reduce harmful CO2 emissions. One method is to use algae
to sequester, or trap, carbon emissions. The U.Va. algae research
team has been working with a number of companies
operating in the Coalfield region and they have plans to set
up a demonstration project in cooperation with a corporate
partner.
ecoMOD
Much focus has been placed on developing hybrid cars to increase our energy independence, but having more energy-efficient homes will go even further in reducing our energy consumption. Combining two distinct but synergistic disciplines, faculty members John Quale (Architecture) and Paxton Marshall (Engineering & Applied Science) have teamed together to radically transform the way we build affordable housing in the U.S. They have created ecoMOD, which is a series of designs for energy-efficient, sustainable, affordable modular housing. It also includes related wireless monitoring systems to rigorously assess the effectiveness of passive and active systems in reducing operating costs and improving environmental performance.
 U.Va. has been working with Southwest Virginia housing authorities, the Department of Housing and Community Development, and non-profits like People, Inc. to implement new ecoMOD prototypes and progressive green building techniques. We are currently identifying modular building manufacturers to produce these residential units in Southwest Virginia for use within the Coalfield region and for shipment to other parts of the country. We will also include workforce training through existing agencies (such as community colleges) to educate a new generation of homebuilders as construction moves from traditional “stick-built” to more efficient modular methods. Blending these design, monitoring, and training elements will ideally establish Southwest Virginia as a nucleus for progressive green building techniques.
Business Education and Entrepreneurship
Established companies and entrepreneurial start-ups benefit from ongoing educational programs that address their professional development and business growth needs. U.Va. is uniquely positioned to provide this type of training, and we are doing so in conjunction with the Southwest Virginia Technology Development Center in Russell County. Together with U.Va.’s College at Wise, and in direct response to corporate input, we developed course curricula and content and delivered both open and customized classes. Some of these were: The Effective Supervisor, Business Fundamentals, and Workforce Development Competencies.
A U.Va.-funded staff member in Russell County coordinates between resources in Charlottesville and course delivery at the Russel County Center, and is continually matching the needs expressed by business leaders with the expertise available in all schools and units at the University. This strong linkage enables rapid and targeted solutions to corporate training needs. In FY 2009, there were over 250 participants in U.Va.-supported professional development programs.
 Ed Hess, a professor and Batten Executive-in-Residence at the Darden
Graduate School of Business, recently led a full-day workshop based on his recent book, So You Want to Start a Business? Additionally he provided one-on-one consulting for entrepreneurs seeking advice on business growth and strategy. Professor Hess subsequently kicked off a new entrepreneurship program for Southwest Virginia Community College. A related four-day three-credit hour class was structured around principles in his book. High school students were able to take this course
through dual enrollment, which is part of a larger strategy to instill a
culture of entrepreneurship during K-12 grades.
Engineers PRODUCED in Virginia
To meet the perpetual demand for engineers, U.Va. developed this program that allows students to earn a bachelor’s degree in engineering while staying in their home communities. The first two years of coursework are delivered by the local community college; the remaining coursework is offered through a blend of online and on-site classes. The program can be tailored to the needs of local industry, producing a workforce that is responsive to the region’s targeted development areas and will have an immediate impact on growth and productivity. An initial pilot program in Lynchburg currently has 150 students working toward their degree at the community college level. The first cohort of students will begin their U.Va. coursework fall 2009. PRODUCED has been so well received by companies in Lynchburg and Danville that we are extending the model to Southwest Virginia. Community college course offerings begin in August 2009 in Big Stone Gap, Richlands, Abingdon, and Wytheville.
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