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Economic development staff reviews programs, partnerships and early‑childhood grant selection
Summary
A Washtenaw County economic development staff member summarized recent outreach and partnership work, including new Agriculture Day school activities, a Manufacturing Day with 14 companies, about 30 attendees at Developer Day, and Cadillac’s selection for a Pathways for Early Childhood Leadership program.
A Washtenaw County economic development staff member summarized the office’s recent outreach, partnerships and grant activity, emphasizing school programs, employer engagement and an early-childhood leadership grant that selected Cadillac as the county’s rural participant.
The presenter said the office published a monthly newsletter and distributed its annual report and then described education-and-workforce efforts that aim to build a local talent pipeline. “Agriculture Day was included uh this past year for the first time,” the economic development staff member said, noting the program brought eighth- and ninth-grade students onto working farms to learn about agricultural careers and techniques.
The staff member described Manufacturing Day as a continuing highlight, reporting 14 manufacturers participated this year, and said Market Rocket — a resume-and-interview event hosted at Baker — also attracted strong teacher and student interest. They cautioned that a March snow day reduced student counts for 2026, so attendance figures undercounted actual community participation.
Partnerships were a recurring theme. The presentation named local partners including the Chamber of Commerce, MDC and Network Northwest (Extension). The presenter described a family-engagement grant obtained through Network Northwest that funded events pairing families and businesses and cited partnerships with “Awell Council on Aging” and EP Manufacturing; the presentation noted a small incentive (a Verizon gift card) was offered to participating families.
Staff also outlined developer outreach. The office held a second annual Developer Day that drew about 30 participants from Lansing, Grand Rapids and Denver to showcase available sites and investment opportunities in the county.
Looking ahead, the presenter said staff will continue enrolling Career and Technical Center (CTC) students in outreach events, work with local media and health-services programs, participate on business- and marketing-advisory boards, and explore a county redevelopment authority as a tool to recruit development. They also listed continuing housing and childcare initiatives.
The staff member said Cadillac was one of five Michigan cities selected for the Pathways for Early Childhood Leadership program and emphasized that Cadillac would be the only rural community among those selected.
The meeting approved the agenda by roll-call vote before the presentation; members recorded in the transcript as voting “yes” were Saggi, Nelson, Nimon, Benjelink, Bush, Potter and Taylor. No other formal motions or ordinances were recorded during this presentation portion of the meeting.
The presentation concluded with an invitation for questions from board members and brief remarks mentioning recent community engagements including the chamber awards dinner and an airport pavilion ribbon-cutting. The board chair then continued with routine meeting business.
