Rural Talent Development and Attraction Lab

We concluded the PA Listening Tour in Indiana, PA today. 🙌 Thank you to for hosting us in their community and to for the sweet treats!

Day 3 of our PA Listening Tour was in Monaca and it was a total win! 🙌 A huge thank you to the staff for being such amazing hosts, and to for keeping us fueled with the best bagels! 🥯 ✨

Reflecting on a productive Day 2 of our PA listening tour in Tamaqua. We’re grateful to the local leaders who welcomed us and provided such thoughtful perspectives on their community’s strengths and future. We also appreciate the recommendations shared with our interview teams today!

The Rural Talent Lab is back on the road. This time in Pennsylvania! Our first stop included Tannersville and Stroudsburg. We really appreciated our discussion with local leaders and look forward to the rest of the week. We also want to highlight Otto, the friendly feline who greeted some of us.

Day 3 in Kansas was in Hays. We enjoyed hosting a community event at Hansen Construction Career Center and had an excellent dinner at . Our listening session at this morning concluded the Kansas Listening Tour and we are excited to review all that was discussed as we continue working towards major project milestones.

Day 2 of the Kansas Listening Tour was in Dodge City. We are grateful for the local leader contributions on middle-skill pathways and determining connections to workforce opportunities. Thanks to the wonderful folks at Dodge City Community College for hosting our listening session, and a shout out to The Cowboy Capital Saloon & Grill for some amazing food! Next stop Hays!

The team had a great first stop on our Kansas listening tour, and we are so glad to have had time to explore Emporia and talk to a number of engaged community members. Thanks to everyone at Flint Hills Technical College for hosting our conversation, and to BobbyD's Merchant Street Barbeque and El Lorito for some amazing food!

Now, we hit the road to our next stop: Dodge City!

Last week, our team was visiting communities across West Virginia for the first leg of our community listening tour at Rural Talent Labs, spending time with rural residents in their own communities to better understand their perspectives on education, workforce, opportunity, and what it takes to thrive close to home.

Rural Talent Lab Principal Investigator and Project Director, Dr. Andrew Koricich, carried those conversations with him to the National Governors Association's Workforce Pell Implementation Lab, where more than 150 leaders from 34 states and territories gathered around one big question: how do we turn Workforce Pell into a real opportunity for our communities?

He was proud to elevate the needs and perspectives of rural communities throughout the conversation. One point he shared during the summit:
“Rural folks are not going to leave their communities for a job — they want to live, learn, and earn where they are.”

That reality should shape how we think about implementation, accountability, labor market data, and access. Rural success will not always show up in large numbers or traditional workforce metrics.

As Andrew said during the panel:
“Quality can’t be defined by larger numbers in rural communities. You have to talk to rural folks.”

What excites us is that communities are ready for this work. There is a huge appetite for short-term training and affordable pathways into good jobs throughout rural America. Done right, Workforce Pell can help rebuild trust by showing rural communities that these systems are built FOR them—not around them.

The Rural Talent Lab finally has a Facebook presence! We've had a lot going on lately, with the highlight being the start of our community listening tours through the rural parts of our partner states. Last week, we visited Wild and Wonderful West Virginia, with stops in Marlinton, Mullens, Welch, and Princeton. Without exception, we encountered incredible kindness, hospitality, and candor, as we spoke to community leaders and everyday citizens about what their community needs for rural folks to access and benefit from middle-skills training pathways. We have been learning many important things about community needs, as well as the strengths they bring to this issue.

Learn more about our work at https://ruraltalentlabs.org.