UNION COUNTY IS KICKING: New education programs and changes in agriculture and air travel are making big impacts.

• Author: Blake, Kathy

Union County's growth and success is occurring across the board in manufacturing, aerospace, agriculture, infrastructure and education. The county southeast of Charlotte that shares a southern border with South Carolina has much to offer businesses and residents.

A total of 195 manufacturing firms, including 16 international companies, collectively employ 14,800 people. Aerospace companies account for 4,500 jobs. The Charlotte-Monroe Executive Airport is updating its runways along with adding hangar space to accommodate an increasing number of corporate jets.

The city of Monroe's new 155-acre Expressway Commerce Park is its third industrial park and a crucial addition since Monroe Corporate Center and AeroPointe Industrial Centre are nearly full.

As the state's third-largest agricultural producer, Union County has 957 farms covering 186,626 acres. It ranked No. 2 in the state's soybean production in 2021 and No. 1 in wheat production in 2020.

EARLY CAREER EXPLORATION AND FLEXIBLE EDUCATION

This extensive variety of commerce gives students in Union County's 13 high schools many choices for jobs and careers.

Union County is pioneering ways for high school graduates to achieve a free college education tailored to negate scheduling conflicts with jobs or personal responsibilities. Students wishing to add job training courses compatible with current employment have education options designed to be flexible at South Piedmont Community College, with campuses in Union and Anson counties, and Wingate University's locations in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville

"In the almost 10 years I've been on staff at the Chamber, we have worked with our education, workforce development and business partners to collaborate on retaining, recruiting and developing a talent pipeline to serve the needs of our business community," says Union County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Pat Kahle. "The Chamber's role is to convene these partners to discuss ways to meet the challenges, leverage the opportunities and develop programs to do both. We've learned over that time that workforce development begins at birth and extends through retirement."

This philosophy is pervasive.

"So many times students would have to choose between work, their families and education, and we try to make it so they don't have to make that choice," says Carl Bishop, SPCC's vice president for academic affairs. "We rebuilt almost 500 courses in our catalog to reflect flexibility. When life happens, they no longer have to make choices. They can be in person this week, online the next."

A program known as HyFlex Classroom Technology is one of several higher-education innovations and has drawn interest from other cities and colleges in the state, Bishop says.

"It's a conversation happening within the community college system. We started offering it before the system was set up for it, so we've been in touch with others at the regional and state levels about how to replicate it.

"People don't have to fit their lives into college; they can fit college into their lives. The phrase 'Are students ready for college?' has become 'Are we ready for our students?"'

Union's healthcare and farming/ agriculture segments are committed to the process.

Agriculture education is available as early as elementary school, with classroom presentations from Cooperative Extension personnel. Atrium Health, Union's Health Sciences Academy, introduces elementary students to the health field.

"This continues throughout middle school and high school. In this program, students see the opportunity for their own economic growth through career training and, eventually, employment," says Denise White, Atrium Health Union's vice president, facility executive and chief nursing executive. "Atrium Health is seeing value by investing in these students as we continue to think of innovative ways to increase the healthcare workforce pipeline, for physicians and nurses, as well as all areas of the workforce."

Exposing students early and continually to career options where they live is key.

"The work in the school system that we're doing to help the next generation is vital because that's...