With the Governor’s Second Annual Forum on Education and Workforce Training occurring next week, Virginians are primed to discuss our world-class workforce and ensure it remains at the top. Recently, several Virginia colleges and universities received national recognition for being among the best higher education institutions in the nation. In the prestigious U.S. News and World Report Top Public National Universities List, The University of Virginia ranked second and The College of William and Mary ranked sixth. The University of Virginia’s undergraduate business program was recognized with a fifth place ranking and its renowned law school placed ninth this year. The College of William and Mary had the eighth ranked undergraduate teaching program in the country.

Washington and Lee University ranked twelfth among the nation’s best liberal arts colleges. Virginia Commonwealth University had the number one Nursing-Anesthesia program and the number four Fine Arts Program. Virginia Tech University’s College of Engineering was rated fifteenth in the country. The University of Richmond was ranked twenty-seventh in the national liberal arts college category. It was also listed as the third up-and-coming liberal arts school and ninth for best value in the liberal arts school category. Virginia Military Institute was ranked fourth in the public liberal arts college category. George Mason University also received a nod as the number two up-and-coming school in country.

At the regional level Virginia educational institutions also showed strongly. In the category of Top Public Regional Universities in the South, James Madison University was ranked number two, the University of Mary Washington was ranked number six and Christopher Newport University was ranked number nine.   

Success at the collegiate level is grounded in a strong system of elementary and secondary education. U.S. News and World Report also released its Best Public High School List and one of Virginia’s high schools received the number one spot in the Gold Medal category. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Va., was selected from more than 21,000 public high schools across the nation as the number one public high school based on proficiency standards and the degree to which it prepared students for college-level work.

In the 2010-11 academic year, 133,603 degrees from associate through doctorate were awarded at Virginia's colleges and universities. With more than 500,000 students currently enrolled in more than 100 in-state institutions of higher education, and 18,000 military personnel exiting the armed services annually, Virginia is producing a diverse pipeline of skilled workers able to meet the needs of businesses looking to expand into the Commonwealth.

Click here to learn more about Virginia’s excellent education system and workforce training programs serving a variety of industry sectors.

Governor McDonnell declared October 17-21 as Manufacturing Appreciation Week for Virginia. This should come as no surprise to the many Virginians employed by the manufacturing industry — more than 200,000 of us. In the last few weeks alone, manufacturing companies across a variety of industries have signaled their confidence in Virginia’s workforce by locating or expanding their operations in the Commonwealth.

Federal-Mogul Corp., a global automotive supplier, plans to invest $10 million to expand its automotive engine bearing manufacturing facility in Blacksburg Industrial Park, bringing 50 new jobs to Montgomery County. Albany Industries, a manufacturer of upholstered household furniture, announced it will invest $2.5 million to establish production capabilities in Galax, Va. This investment represents Albany Industry’s first operation in Virginia and will bring 335 new jobs to Southwest Virginia. 

On the international front, Axxor Group, a Netherlands-based producer of honeycomb, announced it will establish its first U.S. operation in Pittsylvania County in Southern Virginia. In 2006, Swedwood North America, a furniture manufacturer and subsidiary of IKEA, selected Virginia as the location for its first U.S. manufacturing facility. As Axxor Group is a major supplier of honeycomb to Swedwood’s furniture manufacturing operations, this investment is a natural outgrowth of that initial partnership.  

Also arriving from across the pond is NBG Holding’s announcement to establish its first U.S. subsidiary, Fiber Cable Technology, in Botetourt county. The Austrian company will invest $5 million and create 25 new jobs to manufacture specialty optical fiber and optical cables for the defense and energy markets. 

Whether manufacturing furniture or fiber optic cable, companies from all around the world have recognized the pro-business advantages a Virginia location offers. To learn more about the breadth of industries served by the Commonwealth click here. You can also view a Made in Virginia video produced by the Virginia Manufacturers Association here.

With October slated as Energy Month in Virginia, the announcement of a new wind turbine test facility moves the Commonwealth one step closer to becoming the Energy Capital of the East Coast. Named Poseidon Atlantic, the facility will be located in Northampton County on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. VEDP recently attended the AWEA Offshore Wind Expo where Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling announced this project at a dinner for industry stakeholders.

Poseidon Atlantic will be the first comprehensive testing facility of its kind in the U.S. What makes this project unique is its ability to both test and certify the entire wind turbine (as opposed to testing component parts). Poseidon Atlantic will be the only U.S. site able to perform comprehensive testing for both offshore and land-based turbines.

The Poseidon Atlantic team selected Virginia for this project due to its prime location, as the Commonwealth couldn’t be more well-positioned for the offshore wind industry. Virginia has the ideal combination of strong Class 6 winds along the coast combined with shallow waters that allow for the easy installation of turbines and testing pads. The Commonwealth also has the necessary infrastructure already in place including an experienced maritime workforce, access to a fully operational high voltage transmission grid close to shore, and a robust transportation network including the Port of Virginia, which has the deepest obstruction-free channels on the East Coast.

Given the current worldwide shortage of full-service testing centers, this project positions Virginia at the forefront of the industry. Certification is a critical final step in the R&D process as wind turbine manufacturers often seek IEC certification prior to bringing a product to market. The facility is expected to build up to ten testing pads, leasing these to wind turbine manufacturers and bringing the global offshore wind supply chain to Virginia’s shores.

In addition to Poseidon Atlantic, Virginia has attracted additional private sector interest from wind industry leaders over this past year. In February, Gamesa Technology Corp. and Newport News Shipbuilding jointly launched the Offshore Wind Technology Center to develop next-generation offshore wind systems. The two companies were already collaborating to launch Gamesa’s first offshore prototype, the G11X-5.0 MW. In early October, Apex Offshore Wind, LLC and Maersk Line, Limited joined forces and announced their partnership to develop utility-scale offshore wind energy projects.

Though still in its infancy, the wind industry could create thousands of jobs for Virginians and provide a renewable source of energy. With the global supply chain recognizing Virginia’s unique assets and setting up shop along the coast, the Commonwealth is poised to become a hub for the offshore wind industry and one step closer to claiming the title, Energy Capital of the East Coast.

Virginia and Microsoft have partnered once again – not surprisingly as both are IT leaders who realize staying at the top requires investing in the future. This time, that investment takes the form of educating the Commonwealth’s public high school students as Virginia is only the third state in the nation to implement the Microsoft IT Academy Program. With an aggressive goal of full participation by the end of this school year, the program will support both students and teachers by making software and coursework available including everything from computer basics to programming to the opportunity to earn recognized Microsoft certifications.

Virginia is certainly no stranger to technology with the highest concentration of high-tech companies in the country according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Microsoft has demonstrated its understanding of Virginia’s pro-technology climate through the 2010 announcement of its investment of up to $499 million to locate its latest generation data center in Southern Virginia’s Mecklenburg County. This was followed by a recent announcement that the company would invest $150 million to expand this advanced data center and add 21 MW of electric power capacity.

The groundwork to attract Microsoft’s data center and support its educational offering for all Virginians was quite literally laid several years ago by the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative. In an effort to support underserved rural areas in Southern Virginia, MBC established an 800 mile open-access, fiber-optic broadband network. While this advanced network has attracted a flurry of Gigaparks and technology companies to the former tobacco region, the network will also provide high-speed internet access to more than 100 schools in Southern Virginia through a federal broadband stimulus program.

Beginning this school year, students in two Southern Virginia counties have been equipped with high speed broadband for the first time. Jumping from 45 Mbps to 100 Mbps is a significant leap that allows students and teachers to take full advantage of the internet, specifically improving video streaming and online collaboration. Establishing high speed connectivity in rural areas like Southern Virginia sets the stage for Microsoft’s IT Academy to be successful.  This will be truly be a statewide  program, allowing students everywhere to take full advantage of Microsoft’s online resources  in order to build the technical skills necessary to fuel Virginia’s booming IT industry.