FRENCH LICK — The Regional Opportunity Initiatives Innovation awards were presented during the ROI Annual Report to the Region Thursday, April 13th at the French Lick Resort Event Center.
Several groups were recognized for making positive changes in their communities.
The awards were presented to:
Diversity Innovation award: General Motors African Ancestry Network, Bedford chapter. Plant leadership worked to re-energize the chapter.
STEM Innovation award: Shoals Jug Rox Robotix for growing a robotics program from the elementary level to junior high and high school. Two teams advanced out of state competition and will compete later this year in national and world competitions.
Quality of Place Attraction Award: City of Jasper and Thyen-Clark Cultural Center have made downtown Jasper a place where residents and visitors want to explore. Improvements include a renovated movie theater, a 2.1-mile river walk path, and the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center.
Quality of Place Innovation Award: Possibilities in Paoli for addressing the housing shortage and need for building trades workers. Lost River Career Coop class has constructed a home with energy-efficient walls, a passive solar design, and an energy recovery ventilator.
Talent Innovation Award: SAIC, a Fortune 500 company with multiple facilities in the Indiana Uplands. SAIC’s participation in ROI’s UpSkill program to offer six apprenticeships to high school students at the North Lawrence Career Center and COSMOS schools at its Bedford location.
Collaboration Award: Daviess Advances Recovery Access Consortium for efforts to address substance use disorder and mental health.
Employer Innovation Award: JSI, division of Jasper Group, Orleans group, for its workforce development program and partnership with Orleans Jr – Sr. High School.
Community on the Rise Award: The City of Washington, in Daviess County, has transformed itself through efforts to increase housing, the Downtown Commons project, and its involvement with the microelectronics investment at WestGate Technology Park.
