Thursday, Jan. 30 will be a big day for East Hamilton residents and business owners interested in education and economic development.
The annual BOOST Summit, hosted by the Enterprise Gateway Council of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, is being held from 8-10 a.m. at Volkswagen Chattanooga's Academy Conference Center. The Economic Development Summit, which is hosted biannually by the East Hamilton Economic Development Council, is scheduled for the same day from 5-6:30 p.m. at Collegedale City Hall.
"We anticipate a lively, informative exchange of ideas for various career paths as well as what businesses expect from the workforce," Enterprise Gateway Chamber Council president Bobby Brooksbank said of this year's BOOST Summit. "We look forward to seeing the public take advantage of this opportunity to interface with local leaders, network with one another and learn about how we can work together to build an enterprising workforce in our community."
The focus of this year's event is "BOOST into the Future: Changing the Vision of Success" and will feature a panel discussion with local leaders in the education and business sectors. Admission costs $10 per person and includes breakfast. For more information, email tbarringer@hamiltonplasticsinc.com.
Beginning with networking at 5 p.m., this winter's Economic Development Summit will feature a brief discussion by panelists from the city of Collegedale, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, Tennessee Department of Transportation and likely the city of Chattanooga, all beginning at 5:30 p.m. After discussing developments in their areas of expertise, the panelists will break out to different tables in the room.
Instead of a formal forum, attendees can visit individual tables and talk with local representatives. Joshua Michalski, president of the Ooltewah-Collegedale Chamber Council of which the Economic Development Council is a subset, said he's hoping the new setup will provide more personal interactions between panelists and the public.
"It's much more informal but will hopefully be more informational," he said. "It'll be a lot more of a relaxed environment than what we've done before."
Admission is free and light refreshments will be provided. For more information, contact Michalski at joshuamichalski@mjpridellc.com.