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Unit 4 and Champaign County EDC to Host Twitter Chat on High School Referendum

Champaign County EDC is partnering with Champaign Unit 4 School District to host another #AskUnit4 Twitter chat discussing the upcoming high school facilities referendum.

The Champaign Board of Education voted Monday to place a question on the November 4th ballot to fund a $149 million bond issue to build a new Central High School and renovate and expand the current Centennial High School. More information on the referendum can be found at http://futurefacilities.champaignschools.org.

The #AskUnit4 chat will take place on Friday, August 15th from 12-1 pm on Twitter. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions of District administrators about the new high school facilities referendum. Over the past two years, the EDC and Unit 4 have partnered on a series of #AskUnit4 chats on important community topics.

“We are excited to partner with the EDC to facilitate a community discussion about the upcoming referendum,” said Stephanie Stuart, Community Relations Coordinator for Champaign Unit 4. “Parents, students, and community members here in Champaign are talking about this issue, and we want to provide a space to provide factual information and answer their questions in real-time.”

Stuart and Carly McCrory, Communications Director for the Champaign County EDC, will both moderate the chat and various representatives from the Unit 4 School District will be on hand to answer questions.

All community members are invited to participate in the chat. To participate, log in to Twitter and search for hashtag #AskUnit4. To be included in the chat, the hashtag must be included in your tweets.

Follow Unit 4 (@Unit4Schools) and the Champaign County EDC (@CHCEDC) on Twitter.

If you have questions about the Twitter chat and/or would like more information, please contact:

Stephanie Stuart at stuartst@champaignschools.org, 217-531-0252
Carly McCrory at carly@champaigncountyedc.org, 217-359-6261

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Chat transcript (Storify): https://storify.com/unit4schools/askunit4-high-school-referendum

University of Illinois Honored With “Innovation & Economic Prosperity University” Distinction

Article Source: University of Illinois – OVPR

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) designated the University of Illinois an “Innovation and Economic Prosperity (IEP) University.” This designation, which is valid for five years, recognizes institutions that work to advance the economic well-being of their states, regions, and the nation through a variety of exemplary, innovative, and sustainable efforts.

As part of the IEP application process, the President’s Office led an institutional self-study to map out its broader innovation and economic development activities. Through this comprehensive review, which included interviews with units across our campuses, the University highlighted recent achievements, including improving the region’s manufacturing competitiveness, expanding entrepreneurial capacity, and engaging innovation clusters across the state. The review also honed in on unique growth opportunities.

“This process provided a unique opportunity for us to better understand the breadth and scope of our economic development efforts,” said University of Illinois President Robert A. Easter. “We thank APLU for recognizing the University’s accomplishments, and we look forward to more great things in the years ahead.”

 

2014 Innovation Celebration Finalists Announced

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The Champaign County Economic Development Corporation is pleased to announce finalists for the Ninth Annual Innovation Celebration in recognition of those individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions, taken risks, and provided leadership to ensure the continuing economic success of Champaign County, the ongoing success of the University’s economic development mission, and the growth of entrepreneurial talent and energy in the community.

Innovation Celebration is not merely an award for accomplishment, but a benchmark of success for those outstanding individuals, organizations and corporations who are nominated and selected to receive this prestigious award. Additionally, Innovation Celebration serves as a tangible collaboration between the University of Illinois, Parkland College and the community.

The winner of each award category will be announced at Innovation Celebration 2014, held at NCSA (1205 W. Clark, Urbana) on Thursday, February 27, 2014 from 5-8 pm. To RSVP and learn more about the event, visit www.innovationcelebration.com.

Award Finalists

Innovation Transfer Award – University of Illinois
Dr. Stephen Boppart
Dr. Stephen Sligar
Dr. Scott White

Innovation in Engagement Award – Parkland College
Winner will be announced at the event.

Entrepreneurial Excellence: Social Venture Award
[co] [lab]
Pilot
Dr. Fouad Abd-El-Khalick & the EnLIST Team – University of Illinois

Entrepreneurial Excellence: Student Startup Award
KantWait
Servabo
Miss Possible

Entrepreneurial Excellence: New Venture Award
Phi Optics
Veriflow
Electroninks

Entrepreneurial Excellence: Advocacy Award
Ray Price – iFoundry
Jed Taylor – U of I Technology Entrepreneur Center
Dennis Beard – Serra Ventures

Innovation: Economic Development Impact Award
Fox Atkins
Carlos Nieto – Nieto Enterprises
Walter Lohmann

Entrepreneurial Excellence: Management Award
Dan Cermak – Volition
Mike Folk – HDF Group
Bill Cope – Common Ground Publishing

Innovation: Longevity Award
Acoustic MedSystems
Prominic.NET
Pavlov Media

The EDC is pleased to work with the following sponsors of Innovation Celebration 2014: the University of Illinois’ Technology Entrepreneur Center, Research Park, Office of Corporate Relations, and Office of Technology Management, along with NCSA, Parkland College, Singleton Law Firm, Serra Ventures, Hanson Financial, Ramshaw Real Estate, Pixo, Pavlov Media, Meyer Capel, Busey, Carle, Martin Hood Friese & Associates, IllinoisVENTURES, Fox Atkins Development, the Illinois Small Business Development Center at Champaign County EDC, and the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District.

Contact:
Carly McCrory, Communications Director
Champaign County Economic Development Corporation
(217) 359-6261
carly@champaigncountyedc.org

Champaign County EDC Reveals New Strategic Plan & Highlights Products Made in Champaign County at Annual Meeting

More than 150 people gathered at the Hawthorn Suites in Champaign, IL for the 2013 Champaign County EDC Annual Meeting on Thursday, November 21, 2013. The meeting highlighted the organization’s FY13 activities, showcased products and innovation Made in Champaign County (#MadeInCC), and revealed the organization’s new Strategic Plan.

Products were on display from the following Champaign County companies: Advanced Filtration Systems, Inc. (AFSI), Bump Nonprofit Design Studio, Columbia Street Roastery, Conair Corporation, Dart Container Corporation, Data Comm for Business, Inc., Eagle Wings Industries, Easton-Bell Sports, Flex-N-Gate, Herff Jones, IntelliWheels, Litania Sports Group, Oso Technologies, Ragle Dental Laboratory, Silgan White Cap Americas, Taylor Studios, Triptych Brewing, and Volition. Some of the products on display included bumpers from Flex-N-Gate, oil filers from AFSI, a bicycle helmet from Easton-Bell Sports, video games from Volition, and a dinosaur made by Taylor Studios.

The Champaign County Economic Development Corporation acts through public-private partnerships to continually grow the local economy by supporting local business and driving expansion and attraction.

The Champaign County EDC has set the following two-year goals (as revealed in their new Strategic Plan): provide support to create 3,000 new jobs, attract $225 million in new private investment, assist companies to grow payroll by $132 million (this will ultimately increase per capita pay to $26,000), and increase private sector influence in EDC by doubling the number of private investors.

To read the full plan, download a copy below.

EDC 2013-2015 Strategic Plan

To view photos from the event, please visit the Champaign County EDC’s Facebook album.

Buzz about the event:

Group’s aim: Per capita pay hike for county, The News-Gazette

Economic Development Corporation showcases locally-made products, The Daily Illini

Tweets (#MadeInCC)

Contact:

Carly McCrory, Communications Director
Champaign County EDC
217-359-6261
carly@champaigncountyedc.org

 

Champaign Unit 4 School District Highlights Facilities in New Video

Article Source: Champaign Unit 4 School District

In an effort to provide information to the public about how Champaign Unit 4 School District has used funds from the county-wide 1% sales tax, the District has released a video highlighting its new and renovated facilities. The work done at Garden Hills Elementary School, Booker T. Washington STEM Academy, Carrie Busey Elementary School, and Westview Elementary School, is featured, emphasizing the ways the spaces are impacting student learning. The District also highlights upcoming renovations to take place at Robeson, Bottenfield, and Kenwood elementary schools. This will be the first in a series of six videos highlighting each of the District’s goals this school year.

The Promises Made, Promises Kept Committee, which is comprised of community members and District employees, ensures that the District uses the funds on school facilities as promised to the taxpayers. The Promises Made, Promises Kept Committee meetings are open to the public, and meeting dates can be found on the District website.

You can view the video here on the District’s Vimeo page.

 

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