Success Stories

Displaying 1 - 10 of 219

September 10, 2024

EDA Supports Aviation and Aerospace Education on the Mississippi Gulf Coast

Pearl River is just a short drive from the John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Mississippi. Operated by NASA, it is America’s largest and most productive test site for rocket propulsion systems, serving both the nation and the commercial sector. As early as 2005, school officials saw the need to develop a steady pipeline of skilled workers capable of supporting the growing aviation and aerospace fields on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
  • Workforce Development
August 13, 2024

EDA Helps the Wood Products Industry Branch Out in the Northern Forest

Timber markets are one of America’s most valuable, yet unpredictable, natural resource industries. It is no stranger to volatility, going from boon to bust and back again. As recently as 2019, paper mills and biomass electric plants were closing in Maine, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont, a four-state region collectively referred to as the Northern Forest. As the plants continued to close, the demand for wood harvested in the region began to decline.
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Manufacturing
July 16, 2024

EDA-Funded Manufacturing Revival Underway in New England

Pittsfield, Massachusetts is a small New England community about two hours from Boston. Throughout the 20th Century, it was known as a hub for manufacturing, providing residents with a host of jobs in regional production plants. General Electric (GE) was the town’s biggest employer, operating a plastic production facility along the Housatonic River.
  • Workforce Development
June 11, 2024

EDA Opens the Door to Success for Alabama Entrepreneurs

It is in that same spirit of preparedness that Vivian’s Door provides business training to the community, maintaining an open-door policy with its students - small business owners and entrepreneurs. It’s more than just helping them grow their businesses, but rather serving the whole community.
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Small Business Development/RLF
May 28, 2024

Brie All That You Can Brie

When Mélodie Picard arrived in the small community of Phoenix, Oregon in 2018, she came with a determination to meet a niche, but growing demand for high-quality cheese made in America.
  • Small Business Development/RLF
May 14, 2024

EDA-Funded Opportunity Center in KY Opens Opportunities for Every Ability

The Muhlenberg County Opportunity Center (MCOC) first opened its doors in 1966, about 25 years before the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. This non-profit organization in western Kentucky provides mentoring, vocational training, and jobs to adults with disabilities, serving as a critical connector to opportunities and services.
  • Disaster Recovery
  • Workforce Development
April 9, 2024

With EDA Support, Maine’s Marine Industry Reaches New Depths

The seafood industry is often described as the lifeblood of Maine, providing food to customers the world over. Generations of fishermen have sailed its waters in search of lobsters, crabs, scallops, and a variety of other fish. In recent years, the cultivation of oysters, mussels, seaweed, and other species has added to their hauls. Seafood, along with forestry, agriculture, and outdoor recreation, is one of the iconic natural resource-based industries that dominate the economy in the Pine Tree State.
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship
April 4, 2024

Multiple EDA Grants Transform Base Closure into Economic Opportunity in West Texas

The place-based investment is core to EDA’s mission, with our team working closely with local community leaders to ensure EDA’s grants support targeted economic development based on each community’s unique needs. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach, which allows EDA’s grants to be flexible, dynamic, and meet the moment that’s called for in each community. In Lubbock, Texas, that has translated into multiple EDA investments, as leaders turn a painful Air Force Base closure into economic opportunity for the region.
  • Infrastructure
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Manufacturing
  • Workforce Development
March 5, 2024

EDA Supports Bishop Paiute Tribe’s Expansion of Retail Operations to Serve More Inyo County Visitors

The dramatic landscapes of Inyo County, California make it a popular filming location, with more than 400 movies and countless television ads shot in the surrounding area. It is also a destination for outdoor enthusiasts who are drawn to its iconic locales, such as Death Valley and Mount Whitney. All of these visitors require fuel, food, and other supplies, a need upon which the Bishop Paiute Tribe are moving to capitalize.
  • Small Business Development/RLF