Initiatives magazine, February 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

feb 2017 initiatives

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initiatives feb 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

A plAn for HeAltHy employees Huntsville Hospital’s employee health program is designed to work handin-hand with helping local employers with their many employee needs.

And that’s where we come in.

WellnessWorks will assist in controlling costs associated with rising workers’ compensation and general health care costs. Our programs include: Occupational Health Services Workers’ Compensation Services Corporate Wellness Employee Concierge Services Available 24/7, discover how WellnessWorks can help you and your team.

(888) 567-3144

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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welcome new chamber members Joined in December 2016 3-GIS, LLC Acquire Commercial Real Estate

Joined in November 2016

Albany Bistro

Ale’s Kitchen

Allied Associates International, Inc

Alpha Turf Management, LLC

Anchor & Quill Consulting, LLC

AQT Support Services, LLC

ATA Engineering, Inc.

Belt & Bruner, P.C.

Breland Companies

Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate

Brooks Consulting, LLC

Boneal Aerospace, Inc.

Bruderer Machinery, Inc.

ConductoTron

Coastal Mechanics Company, Inc.

Corporate Dining Concepts

Commercial Flooring Services

Elite Heating and Cooling

DanTera Salon & Day Spa, Inc

ExoAnalytic Solutions

Das Stahl Bierhaus Bottleshop & Taproom

Huntsville Psychotherapy & Counseling Services IAP Worldwide Services

Fringe Salon Hilton Garden Inn - Huntsville South/Redstone Arsenal

Jim ‘N Nicks Community Bar-B-Q

Hollywood Huntsville, LLC

Language Solutions, Inc.

Home Mortgage of America NMLS #149932

Lice Clinics of America - Huntsville

La Fuente Meridianville, AL

LifeCenters Development Group

McDaniel & McDaniel Attorneys, LLC

LYN and PIR LLC dba X Golf Huntsville

ML Grice, LLC

Mathnasium of Huntsville

Neighborhood Newsletters, LLC

The Nature Conservancy in Alabama

Nu Image Engraving & Awards

Publix Supermarket #574 - Whitesburg Drive

Prairie Creek Enterprises, LLC

R4 Green Alabama dba Mosquito Nix

Rand’s Blinds, Inc.

ReNew-it Pressure Cleaning, LLC

Rocket City Arcade & Classic Console

The Top

Rocket City Scholarship Granting Organization

Valor Communities

Royal Funeral Home, Inc.

Vivint, Inc.

Saurabh ‘’Sam’’ Mehrotra

XPLOREHSV

Schaeffer Eye Center, Inc. of Providence

Yorktown Systems Group, Inc.

T.3.A.M.S Taco Mama of Providence Tennessee Valley Corridor Uncle Maddio’s Pizza of Huntsville Wayne’s Environmental Services Inc. Wholesale Trophies, Inc. Wireless Advantage, LLC Women’s Business Center of North Alabama Zagster, Inc.

If you want to make a valuable investment in your business and the community, the Chamber is the place to start. Contact Donna McCrary, Membership Retention Manager: 256-535-2027 or dmccrary@hsvchamber.org.

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initiatives feb 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

DEVELOPMENT PARTNER

DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL

CHAIRMAN’S COUNCIL

PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE

REGIONAL PARTNERS

LEADERSHIP FORUM

Huntsville Hospital

Port of Huntsville

ADTRAN, Inc. The Boeing Company City of Madison Redstone Federal Credit Union Vertiv

Madison County Commission Regions Bank

Tennessee Valley Authority

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL BBVA Compass • Crestwood Medical Center • Dynetics, Inc. • General Atomics • Lockheed Martin Corporation PNC Bank • SAIC • SES - Science and Engineering Services, LLC • Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.

CHAMBER TRUSTEES AEgis Technologies Group • Aerojet Rocketdyne • Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Alabama • Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. DynCorp International • First Commercial Bank • Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation Jerry Damson, Inc. • KBRwyle • Landers McLarty Corporation • Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne P.C. Northrop Grumman Corporation • PARSONS • Raytheon Company • S3 • Sealy Management Company, Inc. SportsMed Orthopaedic Surgery and Spine Center • Torch Technologies

PROGRESS PARTNERS ASRC Federal Analytical Services • Baron Services, Inc. • BASF Corporation • BB&T • Bill Penney Toyota, Scion & Mitsubishi

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP • Coates Transportation Group • Colliers International • Connected Logistics Consolidated Construction Company • Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) • Davidson Technologies, Inc. • Google Hexagon US Federal • Huntsville-Madison County Builders Association • IBERIABANK • J. Smith Lanier & Co. • Keel Point, LLC L3 Technologies • LogiCore • Progress Bank • Radiance Technologies • SELEX Galileo Inc. • ServisFirst Bank Rosie’s Restaurants, Inc., & Right Way Restaurants, Inc. (dba Steak Out) • Turner • Vencore, Inc. • Wells Fargo Bank • Woody Anderson Ford

PROGRESS INVESTORS 4SITE, Inc. • AECOM • Alpha Beta Technologies, Inc. • Amanda Howard Real Estate • Anglin Reichmann Snellgrove & Armstrong, PC • Averbuch Realty Co., Inc. – Scott Averbuch • BancorpSouth • Brown Precision, Inc. • Bryant Bank • CB&S Bank • Century Automotive • CFD Research Corp. • Coast Personnel Services deciBel Research • Decisive Analytics Corp. • Deloitte LLP • DESE Research, Inc. • Digium, Inc. • Fite Building Company, Inc. • Foreign Language Services Fountain, Parker, Harbarger • Garver • HEMSI • Hiley Cars Huntsville • Huntsville Botanical Garden • Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau Huntsville Tractor & Equipment, Inc. • InterFuze Corp. • Investor’s Resource/Raymond James • IronMountain Solutions • The Lioce Group, Inc. Littlejohn Engineering Associates, Inc. • LSINC Corp. • MSB Analytics, Inc. • National Bank of Commerce • nLogic, LLC • North Alabama Multiple Listing Service PALCO Telecom Service • PHOENIX • PROJECTXYZ, Inc. • Public Financial Management, Inc. • QTEC • Renasant Bank • RJ Young Company • Sierra Lobo, Inc. Sigmatech, Inc. • Systems Products and Solutions, Inc. • Technicolor • Troy 7, Inc. • Venturi, Inc. • West Huntsville Land Co., Inc. • Wilmer & Lee, P.A. A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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Meet Our Huntsville Lending Team

DeMarco McClain Vice President

Barry Bryan Senior Vice President

Tim Singleton Madison County Area President

256-533-7834 | bibank.com | Member FDIC

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initiatives feb 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

feb 2017

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coverstory

Community Partnership Award

21 12 13, 27 14 20 17

CRPnews economicdevelopmenthighlights educationnews 2016annualreport manufacturingnews volunteerleaders editorial staff

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8 10 24-25 26

Welcome New Chamber Members HREGI Investors Message from the President | Board Listing Community Profile 2017 Executive Committee + Board of Directors Chamber Staff | Associated Organizations

publisher

Chip Cherry, CCE executive editor

Carrie Rice editorial designer

Kristi Sherrard contributing writers

Kimberly Ballard Lyndsay Ferguson Erin Koshut Mike Ward ad sales Tiffany Jordan The mission of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County is to prepare, develop and promote our community for economic growth.

www.HSVchamber.org

(additional contact information on page 26)

Submissions for editorial content are not accepted. Information in this and other Chamber publications is at the discretion of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County.

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

tjordan@hsvchamber.org

Tina Blankenship tblankenship@hsvchamber.org

Kristy Drake kdrake@hsvchamber.org

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Chamber of Commerce

Executive Committee and Board of Directors 2017 Executive Committee Joe Newberry, Chair, Redstone Federal Credit Union Gary Bolton, Chair-Elect, ADTRAN, Inc. Rose Allen, Immediate Past Chair, InterFuze Corporation Ron Poteat, Chamber Foundation Chair, Regions Bank Cynthia Streams, Secretary/Treasurer, Domino’s (Valley Pizza) Kim Lewis, Vice Chair, Economic Development &

A Message from

Industry Relations, PROJECTXYZ, Inc.

Chip Cherry

Kevin Byrnes, Vice Chair, Government & Public Affairs, Raytheon Company

Dear Chamber of Commerce Investors, Community Leaders and Friends:

Tharon Honeycutt, Vice Chair, Membership, MSB Analytics, Inc. Penny Billings, Vice Chair, Workforce & Education, BancorpSouth

This February issue of Initiatives magazine marks the beginning of a new era for the Chamber; the bi-monthly magazine is now being published in-house by the Chamber – to include selling our own ads. Coupled with this change, in March, we will launch Initiatives Online, a digital version of the magazine that will publish in the odd months between the printed pieces. We are excited about the opportunity and flexibility that these changes provide. It allows us to provide more in-depth business coverage and the ability to share more news from our members – and reach a more global audience. Of course, magazine publishing is no easy feat, and we had help getting this project off the ground. We send a huge THANK YOU to our wonderful Initiatives magazine sponsor, Crestwood Medical Center – and Dr. Pam Hudson, Crestwood’s CEO. Beginning with this issue, Initiatives is powered by Crestwood! We look forward to bringing you a much more dynamic and informative magazine and online presence.

Greg Brown, Vice Chair, Small Business & Events,

The Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County is an effective voice for the private sector in North Alabama and the Tennessee Valley due to both our members and our volunteer leadership. The point of our leadership spear is our Chair of the Board. Rose Allen, president of the InterFuze Corporation, served as our Board Chair in 2016. Rose did a fantastic job in her role. Under her leadership, the Chamber grew to more than 2,100 members, performed well financially, and secured 1,318 new jobs for the region. I encourage you to visit bit.ly/COCAnnualReport2016 and view the 2016 Annual Report online. Thank you Rose, for you investment of time and talent with the Chamber. Our region will benefit for many years to come from your guidance and engagement.

Elected Board

As a Chamber, we are blessed as an organization to have many outstanding partners, and key among them is Toyota Motor Manufacturing of Alabama (TMMAL). In January, TMMAL went through a leadership change. Jim Bolte was promoted from TMMAL President to Group Vice President of Manufacturing Efficiency, Toyota Motor North America, and David Fernandes became the new TMMAL President. It is hard for me to effectively share how strong of a partner Jim Bolte was to me, the Chamber, and the Community. He was part of our family. In addition to providing leadership during a time a significant growth in their manufacturing facility in Huntsville, Jim played a key role in helping our community and the region evolve into a great place to live, work, and play.

We celebrate Jim and Tammy Bolte’s impact on our community, and welcome David and Hillary to our community – we look forward to continuing our wonderful relationship with you both!

I look forward to seeing you at a Chamber event soon!

Chip Cherry, CCE President & CEO Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

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initiatives feb 2017

Brown Precision, Inc.

Jeff Gronberg, Vice Chair, Marketing & Communications, deciBel Research, Inc.

Beth Sippel, Vice Chair, Member Engagement, First Commercial Bank

Mark Curran, Chair-Appointed, L3 Technologies, Inc. Tim Thornton, Chair-Appointed, n Logic, LLC Frank Williams, Chair-Appointed, Landers McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep

Mayor Tommy Battle, Ex-Officio Member, City of Huntsville Mayor Paul Finley, Ex-Officio Member, City of Madison Chairman Dale Strong, Ex-Officio Member, Madison County Commission

Tracy Marion, General Counsel, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, P.C. Chip Cherry, President & CEO, Chamber of Commerce Mike Alvarez, Venturi, Inc. Bill Bailey, Radiance Technologies, Inc. James Barclay, S3, Inc. Mike Bertoldi, PROJECTXYZ, Inc. Janet Brown, Belk Frank Caprio, Bradley Lynn Collyar, Deloitte LLP Michael Cox, PARSONS Deke Damson, Jerry Damson Honda Acura Dr. Dorothy Davidson, Davidson Technologies, Inc. Bryan Dodson, PHOENIX John Eagan, BB&T Joe Fehrenbach, Hexagon US Federal Trip Ferguson, U.S. Space & Rocket Center David Fernandes, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Inc. Gene Goldman, Leidos Mike Gullion, SCI Technology – a Sanmina company Jan Hess, Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc. Steve Hill, AEgis Technologies Group Dr. Pam Hudson, Crestwood Medical Center Hank Isenberg, IronMountain Solutions John Jordan, KBRwyle Sean Kelly, Regions Bank Dr. David King, Dynetics, Inc. Bob McCaleb, Northrop Grumman Corporation Janice Migliore, PALCO Telecom Service, Inc. Alana Parker, Rocket City Drywall & Supply, Inc. Leigh Pegues, PNC Bank Jim Rogers, Lockheed Martin Corporation Jeff Samz, Huntsville Hospital Dr. Gurmej Sandhu, Sigmatech, Inc. Charlie Sealy, Sealy Management Company E.J. Sinclair, SES - Science and Engineering Services, LLC Sameer Singhal, CFD Research Corporation Robert “Bob” Smith, Booz Allen Hamilton Nilmini Thompson, Systems Products and Solutions, Inc. Lynn Troy, Troy 7, Inc. Ken Tucker, The Boeing Company Mike Watkins, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama Danny Windham, Digium, Inc.

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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communityprofile

Population

Madison City of County Huntsville

Top Ten Employers Redstone Arsenal* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35,866*

City of Huntsville Madison Metro Area

Huntsville Hospital System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,129

2010 Census

334,811

180,105

42,938

417,593

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,000

2015 Census

353,089

190,582

46,962

444,752

Huntsville City Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,079

5.5%

5.8%

9.4%

6.5%

The Boeing Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,600

% Growth

Madison County Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,389

Households & Income # of Households

135,409

16,583

167,565

Avg. Household Income $79,837

$71,903 $112,609

$77,454

Per Capita Income

$31,010

$30,960

$32,307

76,959

$42,284

SAIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,229 City of Huntsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,206 The University of Alabama in Huntsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,675 ADTRAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,522

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov), 2014 American Community Survey

Source: Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County *includes on-site contractors

Aerospace & Defense Huntsville/Madison County is home to the U.S. Army Redstone Arsenal and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center which combine to drive a thriving aerospace and defense technology industry. More than 41,000 people work at Redstone Arsenal and NASA managing some of the country’s most important and sophisticated technology programs including missiles, aviation, and space exploration.

PUB/DATE: CI February 2016 SIZE: 8.25 x 5.45

For more information, visit:

Research & Technology

COST: $800.00

Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park has earned a reputation as a

TOPIC: CUSTOMIZED

global leader in technology development. The second-largest science and

www.hsvchamber.org

technology park in the U.S., Cummings Research Park is home to more than 300 companies and 29,000 people involved in technology research and development.

High-Performance is the Foundation of a Successful Organization.

Leadership Essentials Certificate

ALSO AVAILABLE:

Both seasoned and new leaders require a robust set of skills to be successful in driving results while creating a positive environment within their organization. Subject-matter experts will focus on skills required for effective leadership in the areas of communication, relationship building, team building, conflict management, self-awareness, and influencing others. Individuals will receive a personalized management and transformational leadership assessment.

Project Management Certificate Begins May 1 or Online

Three Course Certificate Includes: • Building Effective Leadership Skills - Mar 21-23 • Employee Management and Leadership - Apr 12-13

Select One Elective:

Build a solid foundation in project management and ensure your projects are set up for success from the start. Each course is responsive to the PMBOK® and is specifically designed to focus on practical application in a government/contractor environment.

Federal Contract Management Certificates

Essentials: May 1 – 5 or Online Specialization: Online Learn the U.S. Government acquisition life cycle essentials including types, CLINs, contract clauses, legal aspects, and cost/ price analysis. Then, explore specialized topics such as contract formation and negotiation, services contracting, financial and subcontract management, and acquisition issues.

• Communicating with Influence - May 12 • Strengths Based Leadership - May 31

All courses can be customized to meet your specific need!

PCS.uah.edu/PDSolutions | 256.824.4430 | PDSolutions@uah.edu 10

initiatives feb 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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economicdevelopmenthighlights snap: HudsonAlpha will be adding 100,000-square-foot building to biotech campus. Below is an illustration of the future Paul Propst Center for Precision Medicine as designed by Fuqua & Partners Architects, P.C. For more information, visit hudsonalpha.org/800/

ALATEC Acquires USi, Rebrands as Ignite Formerly known as ALATEC, Ignite acquired USi in May 2016 and is now located in the heart of Cummings Research Park, the second largest research park in the nation. Ignite is managed by Jason Shelton, President and CEO, Brandon Umphrey, COO, Trenton Poff, CFO, and Clayton Hinchman, CMO, and continues to operate as a minority employee-owned company.

“Our commitment to encouraging and growing employee ownership in the business is a trend we will continue,” Shelton said. “We want everyone to be invested in the success of the business and share in the rewards.”

Ignite honored ALATEC’s 15-year heritage during the ceremony, kicked off

by Erin Koshut, Cummings Research Park Director, and Joe Alexander, former ALATEC Board Advisor and present Ignite Corporate Board Advisor.

“ALATEC is a success story written by our founders through their commitment to excellence,” said Umphrey. “Ignite is the next chapter in that story and will continue the same commitment to excellence.”

Ignite was founded in 2001 and has enjoyed steady growth and has been listed in Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 fastest growing aero-defense service firms. As a minority-owned ESOP, Ignite’s corporate growth is rooted in the cultivation and retention of shared success among its entire team. Ignite specializes in systems and software engineering, modeling, simulation and analysis, information technology, cyber network defense, and logistics. ∏

continued on page 22

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initiatives feb 2017

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

educationnews

Smarty Pants Preparing for Smart Futures

F

our local students were recognized for making smart moves towards their future at the College & Career Fair. The College & Career Fair is an annual two-day event that serves more than 6,000 high school juniors and seniors from across the three Madison County school districts (Huntsville City, Madison City, and Madison County Schools). Aimed at promoting high-demand careers and their associated educational pathways, the College & Career Fair brings expanded perspective to students while giving businesses direct access to future employees. This year’s Fair had record turnout with more than 40 local industry partners and more than 75 college representatives in attendance. This event is truly the front line of employee recruitment and provides a way to attract and retain our students for a long-term future in the Tennessee Valley.

Students that attended the College & Career Fair were eligible to apply for a scholarship by submitting a Smarty Pants Project. The scholarship opportunity was made possible through the generous support of Lockheed Martin, the presenting sponsor for the Fair.

The project required students to identify the smart moves they will make towards their future and what they learned at the College & Career Fair to help them achieve their goals. They could use any format they chose to convey that information – and did! Applications ranged from essays and posters to videos and Prezi presentations. One student from each district was selected as a winner, receiving a $500 scholarship award. Students submitted such strong applications, that we also awarded one honorable mention scholarship for $100. These four Smarty Pants were recognized at an awards ceremony held at the Chamber. Congratulations to our winners!

Lyndsay Ferguson

Litigation I Businesses Governments Individuals I Non-Profits

L-R: Jennafer Zimmerman, Huntsville City Schools, Grissom High School; Keona Banks, Madison City Schools, Bob Jones High School; Tony Craig, Huntsville City Schools, Columbia High School, Honorable Mention; and Julie Moquin representing Lockheed Martin. Anna Snyder, Madison County Schools, Hazel Green High School was unable to attend.

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.

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Instead of Austin, Texas, Try Huntsville, Alabama – THE WALL STREET JOURNAL NOVEMBER 2016

Huntsville ranked #1 Best Affordable Place to Live.

– LIVEABILITY.COM FEBRUARY 2016

W

e made significant progress in a number of key areas in 2016. Two key areas impacting economic development were the certification of the Huntsville Mega Site and the completion of the CRP Master Plan. Both position us well for future growth.

The reactivation of the Chamber Foundation will allow us to enhance our workforce development efforts by providing professional development to educators teaching the 9th Grade Career Prep Classes in Madison County and the Cities of Madison and Huntsville. All three of these are significant steps forward in ensuring a strong and dynamic regional economy. We look forward to an outstanding 2017!

– Chip Cherry, CCE

President & Chief Executive Officer

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

Economic Development The Chamber is the lead economic development organization for Huntsville/ Madison County, one of the most dynamic economies in the United States.

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existing companies

1,167 jobs $255,994,247 in capital investment

CERTIFICATION OF

1,252-acre

MEGA SITE

Cummings Research Park

New & Expanding Industry in CRP: 6 companies, 605 employees

Government & Public Affairs The Chamber represents the business interests of the Huntsville and Madison County area on the local, state and national levels of government, promoting policies and legislation that allow for the continued economic prosperity of the region.

more than

5,300

attended

government affairs events 14

initiatives feb 2017

Supported efforts to expand FBI operations on Redstone – plans revealed to grow to more than 5,000 employees

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

For the complete Annual Report, visit bit.ly/COCAnnualReport2016

quick bites Workforce & Education

Industry Insight pilot program engaged 40+ high

school career coaches and career tech directors with industry leaders to understand workforce needs and pathways in high demand fields.

Workforce recruitment website was relaunched and rebranded, now hosting thousands of regional jobs for the Huntsville Metro region.

Relaunched the Chamber Foundation to support workforce development initiatives.

Membership 101+ employees 51-100 employees

500 400

MEMBER COMPANIES

BY SIZE

1-5 employees

21-50 employees

MEMBERSHIP NEW SALES

300 200

6-20 employees

100 0

2013

2014

2015

2016

The Chamber relies on a base of highly engaged members to support the organization’s mission of making Huntsville one of the world’s best places to live, work and build a business.

Marketing & Communications DIGITAL PUBLICATIONS:

12,154 TOTAL READS

mobile tablet

MORE THAN 63,000 IMPRESSIONS

desktop

Reach (organic): 519,090 ▲ 16% from 2015

Impressions: 141,105 ▲ 22% from 2015

Engagement: 44,146 ▲ 13% from 2015

Followers: 7,072 ▲ 13% from 2015

AVERAGE READ TIME: 5:43

Small Business & Events

4 EVENTS = 2,242 ATTENDEES 26 EVENTS = 1,188 ATTENDEES S IG NATU R E

NETWORKING

SIGNATURE EVENTS

NETWORKING EVENTS

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

2016 was the year of change – we refreshed several events/ programs, such as Business & Brews – turning it into the most popular networking event of the year. feb 2017 initiatives

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Want to Give Your Employees a Great Place to Work?

Three original restaurant concepts, a hotel and a conference facility are now open at Redstone Gateway.

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Call to learn about the new amenities at Redstone Gateway.

A Mixed-Use Office, R&D, Data and Retail Community

REDSTONEGATEWAY.US

RIDEOUT ROAD AT GATE 9 OF REDSTONE ARSENAL

initiatives feb 2017

DAVID CANADAY 256.517.7034 david.canaday@copt.com

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

volunteerleaders

A Chat with Joe Newberry 2017 Board Chair, Chamber of Commerce

A

lifelong resident of Huntsville and involved with the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County since 1987, Redstone Federal Credit Union president and CEO Joe Newberry steps into his new position as the Chamber’s 2017 Board Chair with a long-term strategic agenda for 2017.

Newberry’s career in the financial industry spans more than 39 years, beginning with 18 years with First American Savings and Loan Association in Huntsville. He joined Redstone Federal Credit Union (RFCU) 20 years ago, but spent a few months in 2007 as president and CEO of Achieva Credit Union in Clearwater, Florida.

Missing home, he returned to RFCU in January 2008 to become its fourth President and CEO. Newberry is an active member of the Huntsville community, recognized and awarded for his community service with the local chapter of United Way, the American Red Cross, the Rotary Club of Greater Huntsville, The Schools Foundation, and the Alabama Space Science Exhibit Commission (U.S. Space & Rocket Center). In 2012, he was a recipient of the Martin Luther King Unity Award.

“I got involved with the Chamber in 1987 when my boss, who was also chairman of the Chamber, asked me to create a team to sell Chamber memberships,” Newberry recalls. “I discovered that without an aggressive Chamber promoting economic development, businesses coming into this area that we call “A Smart Place”, companies will simply go somewhere else.”

Newberry’s team broke the record for selling memberships, which had been set at the time by Huntsville’s Ray Pearman of Ray Pearman Lincoln.

“I had breakfast with Ray several times, and I will never forget him telling me that if you really value your community, you will value your Chamber. They bring economic development to your community, along with rising tax revenues that pay for infrastructure like roads and parks. Those things affect your family and quality of life.” Now many years later, Newberry stands by that advice. “Tennessee Valley businesses owe it to their employees, their children, and future generations to build a healthy economy. The Chamber – with support from City, County, State, and Federal resources – is the catalyst that makes it happen.”

However, he admits the Chamber faces some challenges.

“I believe it is the Chamber Board of Directors’ job to provide leadership, direction, and guidance,” he says. “That involves providing an updated strategic plan the Chamber staff can execute on a day-to-day basis, based on our being a regional Chamber.

“A lot has changed since the existing plan was written,” he continues. “The Tennessee Valley is unique in that we have a large commuter base that draws from more than a dozen surrounding counties, including Southern Tennessee. That makes us a regional Chamber with Madison County as the hub. Many people who work in Huntsville, live in Lincoln County, Tennessee, Athens, or Cullman, Alabama. They care about the quality of living in those communities as well.”

Newberry says Huntsville already has a great deal of synergy with these communities. “I know Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle believes we need to work with all of these communities as well because they overflow into Madison County,” he says. “It gives us an incentive to work with them, and them with us, to create a win-win situation.”

One of the questions he hopes to answer is: With more than 2,100 Chamber members representing a variety of different business sectors, how do we continue to add value to that membership, year after year?

Another challenge ahead is sector diversity. “Fifty percent of our economy is based on DOD and NASA,” says Newberry. “Many factors can change that rather quickly, so the Chamber is always assertively looking at ways to diversify. A good example of us effectively doing that is in advanced manufacturing. “ With companies like Polaris, Remington, Boeing and GE Avaition expanding or coming into the Tennessee Valley, he says the Chamber must continue to cultivate the smartest people. “Success produces more success, and yet that approach creates workforce challenges.

We are all the time trying to develop an up-and-coming workforce for the needs we have,” Newberry explains. “We must continue to build on our highly skilled economic workforce well into the future.”

Coming from a man who cut his teeth on Chamber membership, Newberry has an interesting take on its priorities. “To me, it’s not about getting a certain number of members. It’s adding value to the existing membership and showing other non-members there is real value in it, regardless of the business sector, or size of your business.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think our members take advantage of all our Chamber’s resources and capabilities,” Newberry concludes.

“There is a wealth of practical and strategic information available through the Chamber to help businesses grow and build relationships with customers and potential customers. We have to make sure that is out front.”

• Kimberly Ballard

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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coverstory

Collaboration & Teamwork Redstone and local communities win Partnership Award

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edstone Arsenal, Huntsville, Madison County, the City of Madison and the Tennessee Valley Authority were recognized with the Army’s inaugural Community Partnership Award at a Pentagon ceremony in the Hall of Patriots on December 6, 2016.

The Army’s Community Partnership Award is a new program that aims to recognize partnerships between the Army and the communities that enhance readiness through installation support services. At a time of constrained fiscal resources, partnerships with regional federal, state, academic or municipal entities can provide creative solutions to enhance readiness through installation support services. Award selection was based on improvement to mission capability, expanded capability, cost savings or avoidance, creation of efficiencies, improvement in community relations and ingenuity.

Attending the award ceremony from Redstone were LTG Larry Wyche, the Commander of Redstone Arsenal and Deputy Commander of the Army Materiel Command, and the Garrison Commander Col. Doc Holliday. U.S Congressman Mo Brooks, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Madison Mayor Paul Finley, Madison County Commission Chairman Dale Strong, Chamber President

Chip Cherry, Chamber Sr. VP of Government and Public Affairs Mike Ward, and representatives of TVA were in attendance to receive the award on behalf of the community partners.

The Redstone nomination noted the Redstone Gateway Enhanced Use L ease and especially the relocation of Gate 9 as a part of that partnership. This gate is Redstone’s primary access control point, accounting for almost 50 percent of daily traffic. This move was necessary due to traffic safety issues along high-speed avenues off the installation, specifically I-565. This move is expected to be complete by this summer. This partnership produced a savings to the Army of about $8 million.

In addition, the partnership with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), through a Utility Energy Savings Contract, allowed private facilities funding on the installation resulting in savings on the annual electric bill. Over the past two years, approximately $20 million in upgrades to facilities have been executed that increased energy efficiency and expanded our installation mission capabilities.

The nomination further recognized the partnership with the State of Alabama and local communities throughout North

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A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

ridor to accommodate continued growth on the Arsenal. The City of Huntsville received an easement along the western boundary of the installation and Huntsville will take on a $1 billion effort to upgrade the regional road network. A major goal of this entire effort is to specifically increase traffic safety and reduce commute times to and from Redstone.

The award recognized the City of Huntsville’s construction and funding gift of two separate General and Flag Officer homes and the modification of Goss Road to ensure safe traffic flow onto Redstone Arsenal near Gate 9 were provided Community Partnership Award Presentation, L-R: LTG Gwen Bingham, TACOM; LTG Larry Wyche, Redstone Arsenal; Mayor Paul Finley, City of Madison; Colonel Tom “Doc” Holliday, Garrison; Mayor Tommy Battle, to the Arsenal. This was a cost avoidance City of Huntsville; Mike Ward, Chamber of Commerce; Chairman Dale Strong, Madison County Commission; to the Army of $3 million.

Congressman Mo Brooks, U.S. House of Representatives; and Patrick Murphy, Under Secretary of the Army.

Lastly, the award nomination noted Alabama that allowed local communities to issue state supported the partnership with the U.S. Space and Rocket Center to pursue bonds to support construction and renovation of schools in supa common vision for a quality of life corridor and cultural cenport of Redstone Arsenal. In the past two years, this effort has ter for the community, known as “Exploration Park”. The proresulted in over $500 million of school construction in the Tenposed 1,500 acre plan would combine the U.S. Space and Rocket nessee Valley. This investment in education directly supports atCenter, Huntsville Botanical Gardens, and the City of Huntsville tracting and maintaining the workforce on Redstone Arsenal, our recreation fields with Redstone’s MWR facilities, including the community, and supports the Army mission.

Redstone Golf Course and the Summit (previously the Officer’s Another partnership recognized in the award included the City Club). This project is critical to supporting the current and future of Huntsville’s widening of Martin Road west. The $15 million inworkforce of Team Redstone.

Mike Ward stallation project will significantly expand the capacity of this cor-

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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manufacturingnews

Change of Command Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama has a new president

T

oyota Motor North America (TMNA) announced that David Fernandes has been promoted to president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama (TMMAL), effective in January 2017.

TMMAL, located in Huntsville, employs nearly 1,500 people.

Fernandes joined Toyota in 1998 as a group leader at the company’s West Virginia manufacturing facility.

From there he rose through the ranks and was promoted to help lead production engineering at Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America followed by a general manager assignment at Toyota Kentucky.

In January 2016, Fernandes was selected to be the vice president at ToyFernandes ota Alabama.

“I am grateful and humbled for the opportunity to lead Toyota Alabama as president,” David Fernandes said. “Since joining this team [in 2016], I have seen first-hand the commitment our work-

force makes to meet customer demands while focusing on quality and safety. I look forward to the coming year and transitioning into the new role.”

TMMAL also announced that Toyota Alabama President Jim Bolte was named as a TMNA group vice president of manufacturing efficiency. In this role, Bolte will be responsible for working with Toyota’s 15 North American manufacturing sites to improve overall efficiency and competitiveness. Bolte joined the TMMAL engine plant in 2003 as vice president and became the plant’s first American president in 2009. Under his participation and leadership, the plant expanded four times to become the only Toyota engine plant globally to build 4-cylinder, V6 and V8 engines under one roof.

“It has been my sincere honor and privilege to serve as president of Toyota Alabama,” Jim Bolte said. The continued growth and development of this plant is a direct result of our team members’ hard work and dedication. The ongoing support we’ve received from community partners and elected officials has also created an environment for our plant to thrive. It has been an amazing journey.”

Jim Bolte (left) with Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle and Toyota’s Kim Ogle at the State of the City Address last October. TMMAL was the Presenting Sponsor for this annual Chamber of Commerce event.

In addition to his leadership at the plant, Bolte served the community in many roles. His current and past board activities supporting local organizations include the University of Alabama Huntsville Foundation, National Children’s Advocacy Center, HudsonAlpha Foundation, Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, Greenpower USA, National Science Foundation, Business Council of Alabama, The Committee of 100, Past Board Chair of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County, and Alabama Robotics Technology Park. Toyota Alabama celebrated its 15th anniversary in Huntsville in 2016, including four expansions and investments totaling $864 million since groundbreaking. Production of the plant’s five millionth engine is scheduled for February 2017.

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crpnews

Moving Forward CRP Master Plan approved

I

n May of last year, the City of Huntsville, CRP Board of Directors, and I unveiled a draft new comprehensive master plan and design guidelines for the Cummings Research Park. This plan develops and advances a full cycle of innovation, ingenuity, and scientific achievements in the Park for the next 50 years and gives us a roadmap to get there.

Over the course of last summer and early fall, 21 stakeholder meetings, and two public open houses were held for review/comment on the draft master plan and design guidelines. The plan and guidelines were also posted online and a special feedback email account was established for additional review and comments.

After robust feedback from those stakeholders in the Park, adjacent to the Park, and across the Huntsville community, only minor revisions were requested for the plan. Revisions included additional language around the need and access to transportation options both to/from as well as within the Park, plus a desire for some type of shuttle service(s) internal to the Park. Other revisions had minor impacts on the design guidelines recommendations for setbacks and building heights in CRP West, and changes to several maps that better align with topography and existing infrastructure.

The revised and final plan was taken before and approved by the CRP Board of Directors and the City of Huntsville Planning Commission in late November 2016, which means we’re now off to the races on implementation.

We’ve already begun working on designs for new gateway signage in the Park, and anticipate the old entry signs coming down and new signs going up in the first half of this year. We’re planning for additional signage in the Park to address other needs as well. We began writing zoning ordinances in January, which is all about diving into the details and execution of the recommendations from the plan’s design guidelines.

We’d like to continue to keep you informed on the updates of the plan’s implementation. We’ll be using the CRP Facebook and Twitter pages, and if you want to review the final plan and design guidelines, please visit, www.cummingsresearchpark.com.

Erin Koshut, CRP Director

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

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ED Highlights continued

compiled by Carrie Rice

Crestwood Appoints New Chief Nursing Officer Susan Bryce, RN, BSN, MBA has been appointed Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) at of Crestwood Medical Center. Susan has been with Crestwood for over 12 years and has provided strong leadership especially in the area of Perioperative Services. She has served on several key Community Health Systems (CHS) committees and is widely respected by CHS corporate team members.

In recent years, Susan has assumed more and more responsibilities providing leadership to our nursing team and has served in the role of Assistant Chief Nursing Officer and, most recently, as Interim CNO since November.

“During her time at Crestwood, Susan has been a valuable asset to our team.

Her enthusiasm and expertise motivate and enable our staff to provide quality care,” Crestwood CEO Pam Hudson, MD said.

Bryce says she is grateful to have the opportunity to assume this role and work alongside dedicated healthcare professionals.

“I am understandably proud of the Nursing profession. Nurses combine compassion with knowledge and then marry those tools to critical thinking in order to provide highly skilled care,” Bryce said. “As CNO, I look forward to working with our entire team to provide care in a manner that makes Crestwood the hospital of choice for physicians and patients throughout our community.” ∏

All Native Group Opens Regional Headquarters in HSV All Native Group (ANG) has opened a new office at 6767 Old Madison Pike, Suite 250 in Huntsville. ANG is the government services division of Ho-Chunk, Inc., owned by the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. For ANG, the new office space serves as its management headquarters for projects in the Alabama, Georgia, and Florida tristate areas, as well as for other locations within the southeastern corridor.

“We are excited about the opportunity this new facility brings to further strengthen our ability to serve Huntsville as well as our other southern regional clientele. All Native’s new location enhances our operational efficiencies and responsiveness to evolving customer needs.” said Heath Rist, ANG President and Chief Executive Officer.

The ANG regional headquarters is led by Bruce Ricker who brings more than 25 years of experience in the defense community. As a Director at ANG, Ricker works with customers in and around Huntsville.

Founded in 1999, ANG is a private, tribally-owned and operated government services provider that works principally in the Department of Defense and Department of State sectors. For more info, visit www.allnativegroup.com. ∏

RFCU’s Letters to Santa Raises $5,300 for Foster Children Redstone members and friends helped to brighten the lives of children living in foster care by donating $1 to Kids to Love for each Letter to Santa that were dropped off or emailed to a special fundraising address. The effort raised $5,300 to the Kids to Love Foundation for its first Letters to Santa initiative.

Kids to Love is a non-profit organization that helps find permanent homes for foster children and provides for their immediate needs.

“When we introduced Letters to Santa, we had no idea how well-received it would be. Not only did members and friends write down their requests to Santa and drop them in the mailboxes, but it was also their way of showing love to the children served by the Kids to Love Foundation,’’ said Joseph Newberry, RFCU President and CEO – and the 2017 Chamber Board Chair.

“We appreciate Redstone Federal Credit Union’s continued support of Kids to Love initiatives,” said Lee Marshall, Founder and CEO of Kids to Love. “This generous donation will greatly support programs such as, More than a Backpack, Scholarships and Camp Hope.” ∏

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is pleased to announce

30 Years in Business

(please tell less than 1,000 people)

∏ Largest number of commercial listings in North Alabama for 16 years running. ∏ Our signs are seen by 1,387,480 vehicles every day. ∏ Russ Russell has a Real Estate degree from the University of Alabama and is on the Leadership Council for the Alabama Center for Real Estate. Less than 1% of all Realtors have a Real Estate degree. ∏ Russ Russell is the 1st and only Realtor in the U.S. to hold the Top Two Commercial Real Estate designations (CCIM, SIOR), the Top Land Designation (ALC) and the Top Tax-Deferred Designation (CEA). Less than 5% of all Realtors have any one of these designations. ∏ Russ Russell is the 1st Realtor in Madison County to use a drone in marketing our listings. ∏ Russ Russell is a Huntsville native and has 5 Real Estate-related trademarks. ∏ Russ Russell is the 1st and only Realtor in the U.S. to have a real estate mascot (Ruff Russell).

Who’s Your Broker? russrussell.com A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

feb 2017 initiatives

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Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

2017 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Gary Bolton

Rose Allen

Ron Poteat

Cynthia Streams

Chair-Elect

Immediate Past Chair

Chamber Foundation Chair

Secretary/Treasurer

Kim Lewis

Kevin Byrnes

Tharon Honeycutt

Penny Billings

Greg Brown

Vice Chair – Economic Development & Industry Relations

Vice Chair – Government & Public Affairs

Vice Chair – Membership

Vice Chair – Workforce & Education

Vice Chair – Small Business & Events

Jeff Gronberg

Beth Sippel

Mark Curran

Tim Thornton

Frank Williams

Vice Chair – Marketing & Communications

Vice Chair – Member Engagement

Chair-Appointed

Chair-Appointed

Chair-Appointed

Tommy Battle

Paul Finley

Dale Strong

Tracy Marion

Chip Cherry, CCE

Ex-Officio Member

Ex-Officio Member

Ex-Officio Member

General Counsel

Joe Newberry president/chief executive officer Redstone Federal Credit Union

vice president, global marketing, ADTRAN, Inc.

president, InterFuze Corporation

Board Chair

chief executive officer, PROJECTXYZ, Inc.

president, deciBel Research, Inc.

mayor, City of Huntsville

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initiatives feb 2017

vice president & center executive, Raytheon Company

president/chief executive officer, First Commercial Bank

mayor, City of Madison

president, MSB Analytics, Inc.

vice president, army programs/HSV operations, L3 Technologies, Inc.

chairman, Madison County Commission

north alabama area executive, Regions Bank

division president, BancorpSouth - Huntsville

president & ceo/owner, nLogic, LLC

attorney, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, P.C.

vice president/treasurer, Domino’s (Valley Pizza, Inc.)

CFO / Co-CEO, Brown Precision, Inc.

general manager, Landers McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep

president & chief executive officer, Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County 2017 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Mike Alvarez Venturi, Inc.

Bill Bailey

James Barclay

Michael Bertoldi

Janet Brown

Frank Caprio

Lynn Collyar

Deke Damson

Dorothy Davidson

Bryan Dodson

John Eagan

Joe Fehrenbach

Trip Ferguson

Gene Goldman

Mike Gullion

Jan Hess

Steve Hill

Dr. Pam Hudson

Hank Isenberg

Radiance Technologies, Inc.

Jerry Damson Honda Acura

David Fernandes Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Inc.

Leidos

Sean Kelly

Par Pharmaceutical,

an Endo International Company

Davidson Technologies, Inc.

SCI Technology, Inc.

Dr. David King

Regions Bank

Mike Randolph

S3, Inc.

Dynetics, Inc.

PROJECTXYZ, Inc.

PHOENIX

Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.

Bob McCaleb

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Belk

BB&T

AEgis Technologies Group

Janice Migliore PALCO Telecom Service, Inc.

Bradley

Intergraph Government Solutions

Crestwood Medical Center

Craig Naudain SAIC

Deloitte LLP

IronMountain Solutions

Alana Parker

Rocket City Drywall & Supply, Inc.

Dr. Gurmej Sandhu

Charlie Sealy

E.J. Sinclair

Robert Smith

Nilmini Thompson

Lynn Troy

Ken Tucker

Mike Watkins

Danny Windham

Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.

Systems Products and Solutions, Inc.

Troy 7, Inc.

Sigmatech, Inc.

The Boeing Company

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

Sealy Management Company

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama

KBRwyle

PNC Bank

Jeff Samz

Huntsville Hospital

John Jordan

Leigh Pegues

Jim Rogers

Lockheed Martin Corporation

PARSONS

U.S. Space & Rocket Center

Joe Ritch

Sirote & Permutt, PC

Michael Cox

SES – Science and Engineering Services, LLC

Sameer Singhal CFD Research Corporation

Digium, Inc.

feb 2017 initiatives

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Huntsville_Initiatives_2017.pdf 1 1/17/2017 9:03:08 AM

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County

STA FF Executive Staff

Chip Cherry, CCE, president & CEO Amy Locke, executive assistant Annette Atchley, resource desk coordinator Kathy Davis, resource desk assistant

Economic Development, Industry Relations & Workforce Lucia Cape, IOM, senior vice president Lyndsay Ferguson, workforce director Erin Koshut, Cummings Research Park director Ken Smith, research & information services director Will West, project manager Amy Tubb, economic development assistant

Government & Public Affairs Mike Ward, senior vice president Tina Leopold, assistant

Marketing & Communications Carrie Rice, director Kristi Sherrard, graphic designer Hiroko Sedensky, web designer

Membership Robert Recker, senior vice president, investor relations Donna McCrary, membership retention manager Tiffany Jordan, membership representative Tina Blankenship, membership representative Kristy Drake, engagement specialist | program manager

C

M

Y

CM

MY

Small Business & Events

CY

Pammie Jimmar, IOM, director Emma Williams, specialist

CMY

K

Finance & Administration Mary McNairy, director Jamie Gallien, IT manager Kim Savage, accounting specialist – receivables Lori Warner, accounting specialist – payables Joe Watson, facilities supervisor

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County 225 Church Street NW, Huntsville, AL 35801 phone 256-535-2000 | fax 256-535-2015

www.HSVchamber.org

Associated Organizations

communityfoundationhsv.org

www.uah.edu/sbdc theschoolsfoundation.org

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educationnews

Achieving Tomorrow U.S. Chamber Foundation goes viral with Voices

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hen it comes to workforce development, preparing talent for the future starts in the classroom today. The Huntsville/Madison County community is fortunate to be a role model in this work and is receiving national attention with a video and photojournalistic series produced by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation called Voices. The series highlights the outstanding role the business community, educators, parents, and policymakers play in preparing our students for the jobs of tomorrow.

The Foundation’s goal for the Voices campaign is to emphasize the importance high standards play in K-12 education to prepare students for life after high school. We are grateful for the role of all these voices in our community and we’re excited to feature some of the Voices of Huntsville in Initiatives magazine! The Huntsville video can be found at bit.ly/VoicesHuntsville, and more Voices of Huntsville testimonials can be found at achievingtomorrow.org/voices.

the kids were learning in the classroom. We list the standards that each activity relates to, and the parents can actually understand how everything connects together in a positive way.

The kids love the program. They really enjoy it. They’ll tell me at school and stop me in the hallway to say “Hey, I love my box” or “When’s the box coming?” It’s pretty great to see kids light up and be excited about learning. That’s why we do what we do.

Russ O’Rear Principal, Madison Crossroads Elementary School

I think as leaders, it’s incumbent on us to look for different projects, different initiatives, ideas, strategies – whatever they may be – to level the playing field, so to speak, and give all students an opportunity to have the knowledge and skills that they need to be successful as they move throughout school and beyond.

One night I was watching Shark Tank and I saw an idea for monthly boxes. I thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be cool if we could mail out boxes to kids with some kind of hands-on learning activity inside?” That was how the ‘Think Outside the Box’ program started.

We send a color-coded monthly box to kids in each grade level.

We have three main goals. The first is to create excitement by letting kids look forward to receiving a box in the mail every month.

The second is to encourage them to spend some quality time with their family, sitting down together and going through the activities.

The final goal is to provide context and understanding about what

Eli Bannister 3rd grade student, Madison Crossroads Elementary School

If I could choose doing regular homework or the boxes everyday, I’d definitely choose the boxes.

Each month, I do the activities in the box with my sister, brother, mom and dad. I like doing it with my family more than just by myself. It makes it so much more fun that way. I really like learning things with other people. I still like learning from the textbooks in school but these boxes take you on a different kind of adventure.

My favorite box had gummy worms. The activity was about measurement and we measured the different worms, but we also got to eat the worms afterwards. It was awesome. It was about math but it felt really fun. You’re learning something but you just don’t realize it, I guess.

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY

•

Lyndsay Ferguson

feb 2017 initiatives

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Until March 31st, earn 3% CashBack every time you use your Redstone Visa® Business credit card. No categories to keep track of. No spending caps. It’s easy – just get 3% CashBack on all purchases with your Visa Business card!

256-327-1104 | redfcu.org *Offer valid on qualifying net purchases made through March 31, 2017. Qualifying net purchases defined as purchases, less any merchandise returned for credits. The 3% CashBack earned during the promotional period of January 1 - March 31, 2017, will be deposited into the primary business deposit account no later than April 30, 2017. Fees, interest charges, cash advances, balance transfers, and payments are not considered purchases and do not apply toward this cash bonus. To be eligible for the rebate, the credit card account must remain open and current.

Other restrictions may apply. See credit card agreement for additional information of terms and conditions about your credit card account.

At least one owner of the business must be, or become, a member of RFCU®, or be in our field of membership in order to obtain a business loan. Must be eligible for membership and open a share savings account to become a member. A $5.00 minimum balance is required to open the share savings account and must be maintained in the account at all times. Age and other restrictions may apply.

In addition, a business share account must be opened in the business name in order to obtain a loan. Fees and restrictions may apply to some business accounts, products, and services. All loans subject to credit approval. Redstone Federal Credit Union is an Equal Credit Opportunity Lender.

credit union is federally 28This initiatives feb 2017

insured by the National Credit Union Administration.

A PUBLICATION OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY