The City of Dublin Business and Education Workforce Development Summit, which culminated in the creation of the Dublin Entrepreneurial Center, was named the Best Innovation in Economic Development by the Ohio Economic Development Association, according to a city press release.  

Spearheaded by the Economic Development department, the initiative was selected for its effort to identify and address the needs of educators and businesses, with the goal of improving workforce development in the community. The award was presented at OEDA's Fifth Annual Legislative Event March 11.

"We felt it was important to build our understanding of workforce needs in relation to education and business requirements," says Dana McDaniel, deputy city manager/director of economic development. "We want to be able to grow Dublin's business community through attraction, retention and entrepreneurial company development."

Establishing working relationships between education institutions and businesses/organizations for business training programs are just some of the initiative's outcomes. Partnerships include BioOhio and Tolles Career Center for biotech program development and Columbus State Community College Center for Workforce Development and the City of Dublin. The advent of the Dublin Entrepreneurial Center (DEC) also stems from the initiative. The DEC was created to house and provide resources to innovative start-up companies.

The city will host an Open House at the DEC, located at 7003 Post Rd., from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. March 19.