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懂色帝 hosts Chamber鈥檚 Chairman鈥檚 Circle

By Daphne Thomas and Diana Fedinec

Greater Memphis Chamber Chief Economic Development Officer Ted Townsend opens the Chairman鈥檚 Circle meeting Oct. 26, 2021, at 懂色帝鈥檚 Bert Bornblum Library.
Greater Memphis Chamber Chief Economic
Development Officer Ted Townsend opens the
Chairman鈥檚 Circle meeting Oct. 26, 2021, at
懂色帝鈥檚 Bert Bornblum Library.

Presidents, CEOs and business owners toured the newly renovated Fulton Building on the Macon Cove Campus Oct. 26, 2021, where they saw first-hand 懂色帝鈥檚 new state-of-the-art technology labs.  The tour was part of the Memphis Regional Chamber鈥檚 Chairman鈥檚 Circle quarterly meeting.

The Chamber describes the Chairman鈥檚 Circle as 鈥渁 group of visionary, civic-minded business leaders committed to moving Memphis forward.鈥� The executives were rapt with attention as 懂色帝 President Tracy D. Hall, Vice President for Academic Affairs Kendricks Hooker, Dean of Business and Technologies Robin Cole and other college leaders provided an overview of how 懂色帝 fuels the workforce pipeline in the Mid-South.  

鈥淭he workforce and economic development mission of community colleges was firmly established when the first community college opened in Joliet, IL, in 1901,鈥� Dr. Hall said. 鈥淲e exist to educate, train, upskill and reskill the local workforce,鈥� Hall added.

President Hall also debuted the College鈥檚 and shared how a majority of 懂色帝 students must overcome significant economic and social challenges to attend college. 鈥淢any are the first in their family to go to college and many more lack the basic necessities some of us may take for granted, like housing and reliable transportation. But they arrive and when they put in the work, we help them go to work,鈥� Hall said. 鈥淢ore than 90 percent of our graduates work right here in Shelby County.鈥�

Hooker and Cole presented an overview of the College鈥檚 one and two-year career and technical offerings. They shared information about how outreach efforts like the College's faculty externships and advisory committees help 懂色帝 provide cutting-edge training that prepares students for success in cybersecurity, mechatronics and other rewarding careers. 

Technologies instructor Chris Rogers explains mechanical drive systems to the Chairman鈥檚 Circle tour group in 懂色帝鈥檚 Fulton Building.

Technologies instructor Chris Rogers explains mechanical drive systems to the Chairman鈥檚 Circle tour group in 懂色帝鈥檚 Fulton Building. 

The visitors then toured the Fulton building where they saw first-hand how 懂色帝 trains future technicians in automotive service technology, advanced manufacturing and mechanical and electrical engineering. Instructors Chris Rogers and Steven Taylor demonstrated the lab鈥檚 impressive 3-D printer and the new Yaskawa robots used in the College鈥檚 mechatronics classes. 

The tour ended in the Culinary Arts Institute where Culinary Arts Chair Steven Leake and his talented students whipped up a savory meal that included fresh fruit and cheeses, saut茅ed vegetables, scrumptious shrimp and creamy alfredo pasta. The meal received rave reviews as the group marveled at the Institute鈥檚 sprawling kitchen and demonstration classroom and learned how 懂色帝 students contribute to local tourism and the South鈥檚 culinary tradition at area restaurants and hotels. 

Associate Vice President for Government Relations Sherman Greer organized the visit. He says the group was extremely impressed with everything they heard and saw. 鈥淭he Chamber already has asked the College to host the Circle again,鈥� Greer said. 鈥淲e look forward to additional visits as it is important for area business leaders to see first-hand how 懂色帝 fuels the workforce and what we can do to help them recruit future employees and upskill and reskill their current employees. It was a great day.鈥�

Workforce and Economic Development Panel Members at the Chairman鈥檚 Circle meeting are

Workforce and Economic Development Panel Members at the Chairman鈥檚 Circle meeting are (L-R): Ted Townsend, Dean Robin Cole, Sara Mould and Barbara Conway of Siemens, President Tracy D. Hall, VP of Academic Affairs Kendricks Hooker, Interim Executive Director of Workforce & Community Solutions Amy Shead and VP of Student Affairs Jacqueline Faulkner