Roberta Reardon, New York State Commissioner of Labor, was the keynote speaker at the annual Orange County Economic Summit, held this year at Mount Saint Mary College.
Mount Saint Mary College hosted the third annual Orange County Economic Summit on Friday, September 20, which examined how to create new career opportunities for the next generation of our local leaders.
The conference was coordinated by the county economic development team, which is led by its director, Steven Gross.
Kicking off the conference was a talk by Dr. Robert Gervasi, President of Mount Saint Mary College.
“Orange County is a wonderful place to live, work, and play,” said Dr. Gervasi. “Mount Saint Mary College is committed to workforce development.”
The college’s goal, Dr. Gervasi noted, is for 100 percent of its students to take at least one internship during their time at the Mount: “Studies show that the rate of employment for grads goes up astronomically if they’ve had internships,” he said.
The keynote speaker of the event was Roberta Reardon, New York State Commissioner of Labor. Reardon said that there are many career opportunities in Orange County, in fields such as tourism and the film industry. But in order to keep up with changing technological and business environments, our future leaders must embrace lifelong learning to keep up with these trends.
“We have to prepare for the next generation of workers. That is absolutely critical,” said Reardon. “I’m not talking about jobs – I’m talking about careers. Because that’s what we want for all of our young people.”
She added, “We need our workers to have a solid footing in communication, self-motivation, problem solving, and teamwork…Our economy is constantly and rapidly evolving, so it’s essential that our workforce do the same.”
Other notable speakers included Steven Neuhaus, Orange County Executive and a 1996 graduate of the Mount; William Fioravanti, Executive Director of the Orange County Industrial Development Agency and a Mount Trustee; Joe Minuta, Chairman of Education and Economic Development; Katie Bonelli, chairwoman of the Orange County Legislature; Robert Sassi, chairman of Orange County Personnel and Compensation; and more.
The second half of the conference featured three panels comprised of local leaders, which delved into the topics such as “Leaders Preparing Our Future Workforce,” “What Do Our Employers Need,” and “Community Preparedness.” The panels included local leaders such as Kristine Young, President of SUNY Orange; Dave Jolly, President and CEO of Cornerstone Family Health; and Adam Bosch, President and CEO of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress.