September 22, 2022
The Texas Work Force Commission and Marshall Economic Development Corporation awarded East Texas Baptist University a $299,470 grant for the creation of the Workforce Training Center that will be located within Synergy Park, the University’s dedicated center for workforce development, educational learning, business workspace cooperative, and community organizational networking.
“Receiving the High Demand Job Training Grant from the Texas Workforce Commission, in partnership with the Marshall Economic Development Corporation, has allowed us to accelerate our already aggressive construction schedule for the renovation of Synergy Park,” ETBU Director for Synergy Park Scott McCurdy said. “These funds will enable Synergy Park to provide a premium training space for the occupations our region needs most. The TWC award, along with the generous support of Marshall EDC, has ensured Synergy Park’s Workforce Training Center will be properly outfitted to provide a wide variety of job skills training for many years to come.”
Through a workforce development program centering on Supervisory and Project Management (SPM), ETBU will work to recruit current professionals who seek specialized training, skills enhancement, and career advancement in the fields of oil and gas, manufacturing, logistics, construction, and industry through the Synergy Park Workforce Training Center. The University will also utilize its current partnership with Marshall Independent School District and area colleges to recruit and enroll students in vocational development partnership programs through the Workforce Training Center.
“Synergy Park will be a new education–business pathway for a collaborative community initiative that effectively engages employers, community-based organizations, and educational institutions,” ETBU President J. Blair Blackburn said. “Synergy Park will empower community members to be workforce ready and to match the skill needed in an evolving marketplace. It will provide clinical mental healthcare, speech-language pathology services, and literacy development strategies to individuals in the community.”
Synergy Park will offer adult education, continuing education, workforce training, and professional and graduate-level education programs while uniting individuals and organizations for networking to foster cooperative avenues for professional growth, organizational success, and economic development.
“Marshall is blessed to have a talented and dedicated workforce comprised of men and women who exhibit servant leadership in all roles of our local businesses,” McCurdy added. “At Synergy Park, citizens of Marshall and the greater East Texas region will find the training and resources necessary to take the next step in their careers. We will work to ensure that Synergy Park empowers our community members to be workforce ready, with the skills needed in an evolving marketplace.”
Synergy Park and the Workforce Training Center are scheduled to open in the spring of 2023.