Hartwick Partners with Local Leaders on Economic, Community Initiatives

Hartwick College has joined SUNY Oneonta and over 30 organizations to form a partnership to spur innovative economic and community initiatives in the region.

The initiative – the Regional Innovation Council – is spearheaded by SUNY Oneonta President Alberto Cardelle and taps a team of businessRegional Innovation Council Members and anchor institution leaders, including Hartwick College President Darren Reisberg.

“Hartwick is deeply committed to deliberate and meaningful engagement with Oneonta and our surrounding communities,” said President Reisberg. “The launch of the HartLand Promise tuition support effort clearly demonstrates that commitment. And through our partnership with the Regional Innovation Council, I think we do even more to leverage the College’s burgeoning innovative ecosystem to make Oneonta and our region a better place to live, study and work.”

In addition to Cardelle and Reisberg, the RIC leadership team includes Chad Hall, senior vice president and co-founder of Ioxus; Catherine Huber, district superintendent of the Otsego Northern Catskills BOCES; Jeff Katz, executive director of the Community Foundation of Otsego County; Patricia Kennedy, chief executive officer at Springbrook; and Steve Wilson, county administrator of Otsego County.

Since the council’s inception in 2022, approximately 75 individuals – including members of the Hartwick community – have joined together to collaborate on regional issues and opportunities in healthcare and human services, education, business development, employee recruitment and retention, arts and culture, sustainability and agriculture.

Working groups addressing some of the issues and opportunities have already launched 20 initiatives, including new educational and workforce development pipelines supporting our schools, healthcare and human service industries; a business plan challenge to support entrepreneurs in our local and regional communities; and new initiatives to attract and retain employees and families in the region.

For more information about the RIC, visit the SUNY Oneonta news page.

March 23, 2023

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