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Kentucky ranks second in region, eighth in nation for economic development

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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is highlighting new recognition of the commonwealth’s economic success.

The governor’s office says Site Selection magazine ranked Kentucky in second place for its South Central Region rankings and in eighth place nationally in its 2024 Prosperity Cup rankings. The Prosperity Cup “recognizes the competitiveness of state-level economic development agencies and their success in landing capital investment projects according to data from 2023.” Expanded facilities, new jobs created, and sales tax climate are among the criteria for the rankings.

The governor touted some of the state’s accomplishments during the ribbon cutting for the ECTC BlueOval SK Training Center Wednesday.

“We’ve now had over $30.6 billion of new private sector investment in us in just 4.5 years, a record by far, over a thousand new location and expansion projects, 52,700 new jobs,” Beshear said. “We’ve broken every export record, every tourism record. It is an exciting time to be a Kentuckian right now.”

Beshear has cited BlueOval SK as being the catalyst for making the electric vehicle industry a central part of new development in the state.

“We are leading this country in the EV sector with $11.7 billion announced in just 3.5 years, and 10,250 full-time jobs,” Beshear said.

More information on Kentucky economic development efforts can be found at ced.ky.gov.

KY Gives Day raises nearly $100K for area non-profits

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The Central Kentucky Community Foundation facilitated the twelfth annual KY Gives Day for regional non-profits Tuesday.

Community Foundation Communications and Projects Coordinator Erin Hahn said the effort was a successful one.

“25 regional organizations participated and they had a great day,” Hahn said. “It was a 24-hour online giving day and we raised collectively close to $100,000, and that’s just due to the amazing and generous community that we live in.”

More than 600 donors contributed 771 gifts to regional organizations. Hahn said the individual support is a credit to the impact the nonprofits have across the community.

“Yes, it’s a 24-hour online one day of giving, but more importantly, it’s you give $5, you give $10, but every dollar counts, and it really does help to make a strong impact to all of the organizations that do so much good in our community.” Hahn said.

Participating organizations compete for state and regional prizes, which Hahn said is a way of adding friendly competition and encouraging more support.

“The organizations obviously are wanting to raise dollars for their organization, but we kind of help to throw in a little bit more fun with providing prizes for most dollars raised,” Hahn said. “We have a couple of power hours through the day, which some organizations actually take advantage of having matches during those periods.”

The leading recipients in the region were the Lincoln Museum, Bernheim Forest, and Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. More information and the complete leaderboard can be found at www.kygives.org.

ECTC and BlueOval SK host ribbon-cutting for training center

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Government, business, and community leaders joined officials from Elizabethtown Community and Technical College and BlueOval SK as the ribbon was cut on the college’s new training center located just outside the battery park in Glendale.

ECTC President and CEO Dr. Juston Pate said cutting the ribbon on the facility is a testament to the investment, vision, and commitment of the many community partners that have helped bring the project to fruition.

“It is kind of hard to think that a year ago we were just breaking ground on this,” Pate said. “We were here not even really a full year yet. It was a nice, beautiful, warm day, and we were thinking about what could be, and here just a short year later we’re celebrating what is.”

The ECTC BlueOval SK training center is a 42,000 square foot facility that will host training with a primary curriculum focused on battery knowledge, roles, and skills.

“The ECTC BlueOval Training Center is going to serve trainees who are looking to enter an innovative, high-wage, high-demand career, and at ECTC we could not be more proud to serve such a critical role in preparing those employees for those careers, and we could not be more proud to support the historic investment that BOSK has made in not just Hardin County but the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” Pate said.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said the investment of BlueOval SK and the partnerships that help support ECTC will help change lives.

“This is advanced manufacturing with cutting-edge technology, so even with a workforce second to none we knew we would have to rise to the challenge to make sure we could fill all of these good jobs,” Beshear said. “We are facing this head-on with three great Team Kentucky partners: Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, BlueOval SK, and Ford.”

The governor credited BlueOval SK with sparking development in the commonwealth that has revolutionized Kentucky’s image.

“We are the first call that world class businesses are making right now,” Beshear said. “We are the first destination they want to come to. Never a flyover state ever again. Never a place anybody looks down their nose at ever again. We are truly together building a new Kentucky home.”

Beshear recognized the center’s ahead-of schedule completion in part by honoring Trace Creek Construction Vice President David Milam and Superintendent Scott Dalton as Kentucky Colonels. The training center will start onboarding classes in June.

Real ID deadline less than a year away

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Kentuckians have one more year to get their licenses upgraded to a Real ID.

Enforcement of the Federal Real ID Act begins on May 7, 2025, after which a Real ID state-issued driver’s license or ID or another federally-accepted form of identification such as a passport will be required for air travel and access to government or military buildings that require ID.

A state-issued Real ID must be requested in person at any of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Driver Licensing Regional Offices. In order to get a Real ID, you must bring one proof of identity document, one proof of Social Security document, and two proof of residency documents.

Kentuckians can renew a driver’s license up to six months before the printed expiration date, and cards can be upgraded to Real ID at any time. Standard issue licenses will still be available and will still be valid for driving and proof of identity or age, but will not be valid for security checks.
A list of valid documents for registering and more information can be found at www.realidky.com.

ECTC celebrates student success with spring graduation ceremony

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Elizabethtown Community and Technical College celebrated the accomplishments of its students Monday with their spring graduation ceremony, held at Severns Valley Baptist Church in Elizabethtown.

ECTC says the college expects to award 725 degrees and diplomas along with around 1,200 certificates to students that completed coursework this spring.

ECTC President and CEO Dr. Juston Pate said Tuesday that graduation is a celebration for the students and the community.

“When a student comes to Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, they’re going to get relevant education for being here,” Pate said. “They’re probably going to stay here, which means they are going to be a vibrant, contributing part of our community. That’s where we want to be as a college, and to get to see that last night, that’s what makes graduation so special.”

Pate said the investment these students make in themselves by continuing their education pays dividends in multiple ways.

“Roughly half of our students do go on to transfer for a four year degree and that kind of thing, but because they’ve spent those first two to three years here after high school making connections in the community, probably getting that first job here in the community, the data shows that they are more likely to get that degree and stay here,” Pate said.

Whether a student stays in the area or ventures elsewhere, the college is still doing what it set out to do.

“The mission of the college is to add value to the lives of our students and then return that value back out into the community, and that value is represented in those lives that have bettered themselves by getting skills and knowledge that they didn’t have,” Pate said.

Enrollment for summer classes and the fall semester is currently open. Visit ECTC on the web or contact the college for more information.