January 5, 2009 -- Jim Fram, President and Chief Executive of the Bartlesville Regional Chamber of Commerce will soon leave that job and join Tulsa’s Metro Chamber of Commerce as Senior Vice President of Economic Development.
Fram joined the Bartlesville chamber in 1997 when he was tapped to lead the economic development corporation. Besides his chamber duties, Fram also led the Bartlesville Development Corporation.
Fram will also head the Chamber's Tulsa's Future Program, which has a goal of creating ten-thousand quality jobs over the next five years. December 16, 2008 -- The Governor's Council for Workforce and Economic Development (GCWED) endorses the Career Readiness Certificate (CRC) to certify Oklahoma's workforce and meet the needs of both employees and employers. During this implementation stage the Governor's Council is offering a free WorkKeys job profile to companies that meet the criteria.
 Cover Letter for Application for Incentive Job Profiles
The application deadline is Jan. 31, 2009.
Application for Incentive Career Readiness Certificate (CRC) Job Profiles December 11, 2008 -- The Oklahoman reports projects in four Oklahoma cities are included on a list provided to Congress this week by a national mayors’ group.
The list of local projects is being presented to Congress by the Washington-based U.S. Conference of Mayors as part of a widespread economic stimulus package proposed by President-Elect Barack Obama. Dec. 9, 2008 - New data from the 2005-2007 American Community Survey is now available for download.
American Community Survey Folder
Highlights include:
- This data release covers all areas with a population of 20,000 or more;
- This is the first release of data for communities with populations of 20,000 to 64,999;
- This is three year, multi-year data, not an averaging or restatement of single year data;
- There are 162 Oklahoma geographies reported under this release, up from 72 in the last release, including:
December 4, 2008 -- The Oklahoma Department of Commerce recognized Alva as a "Certified Work Ready Community" during a recent ceremony at the Woods County Courthouse. Oklahoma Department of Commerce Secretary Natalie Shirley praised the combined efforts of the city and its leaders to become the third community in the state to receive the work ready certification.
"The key to economic development in Oklahoma is workforce recruitment, training, and certification," Shirley says. "The Work Ready Community certification is a tool that will strengthen the pipeline of skilled workers in Oklahoma."
December 1, 2008 - According to the Tulsa World, new report released by the ACCRA Cost of Living Index ranks Muskogee the 5th least expensive city in the country.
Muskogee Development Marketing and Research Director Marie Seabolt tells the World low transportation and housing costs lead to the ranking. November 18, 2008 - The Central Oklahoma Community Action Agency (COCAA) recently came to the aid of an elderly Seminole woman.
The woman's home and yard were in disrepair and without changes; the elderly woman would have to be placed in a nursing facility. November 4, 2008 -- Considering the state’s generation capacity, location, available workforce, and competitive business costs, Oklahoma is the ideal location for wind generation, tower and blade production, turbine component manufacturing, repair and maintenance operations, and industry R&D.
To help site selection consultants quickly access the information they need about Oklahoma’s emerging wind energy industry and help community economic developers land generation and wind-component manufacturing facilities, OKcommerce.gov recently launched a new section called Oklahoma is Wind Energy. | Check out these links or call us today at 800-879-6552 for personal assistance:
Did you know Oklahoma's Weatherization Assistance Program saved Oklahoma families more than a half million dollars last year? Did you know more than 300,000 residents living in rural Oklahoma benefited from Community Development Block Grant projects last year?
These statistics and more are featured in the 2007 Community Development Annual Report from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce. Download your copy today and learn more.
| 
