Ep. 029 - Workforce, Collaboration, and Economic Growth with Christy Zeringue

In this episode of Bridging the Bayou, Chancellor Kristine Strickland sits down with Christy Zeringue, President and CEO of Colab.

From workforce development and economic growth to regional collaboration and community identity, Christy shares her perspective on the opportunities and challenges shaping the Bayou Region. The conversation explores talent retention, industry expansion, quality of life, and the importance of creating a strong future for the communities that call South Louisiana home.

Colab - https://www.colabregional.com

 Louisiana Economic Development - https://www.opportunitylouisiana.com

 South Central Planning & Development Commission (SCPDC) - https://www.scpdc.org

Fletcher Technical Community College - https://www.fletcher.edu

Follow Your Inspiration (corporate) - Music by ArtIssizm on Pixabay

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to Bridging the Bayou, where we will explore what it means to work, live, and play in the Bayou region. Join us as we take a deeper dive into the people and experiences that make our region such a special place to live and work. On each podcast, we will talk to individuals who are making our region grow and go, who are making strides in uplifting our community. This year, Fletcher Technical Community College is celebrating its 75th anniversary, 75 years of changing lives. This is a podcast of Fletcher Technical Community College. Welcome to Bridging the Bayou, the podcast of Fletcher Technical Community College. I'm Fletcher's Chancellor, Christine Strickland, and I am joined today by one of our regional rock stars, Christy Zarang, the president and CEO of Colab. Welcome to the podcast, Christy.

SPEAKER_01 1:06

Thank you so much for having me. And I would like for you to just sit on my shoulder and just tell me that I'm a regional rock star all the time.

SPEAKER_00 1:13

You got it. You got it. I might make you a little troopy. This would be great. Well, welcome and thanks for joining us today. We want to talk all things economic development, all things by you region and collab. And uh, but to get there, first you must run the gauntlet of five and five, which is five personal questions, just so we can get to know you a little bit better. Okay. I'm sure you are there's more to Christy Zarang than CEO president of collab. So we're gonna get to know that person first. How about that? Let's do it. All right, let's do it. Your life is a movie. What song is playing at the opening scene? Life is a highway.

unknown 1:54

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:55

Let's go. It's all about the journey. Oh, I love that. Now I'm gonna be singing that song all day, too. Okay. Um something you're good at that most people would not know.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

Well, um, there's two things. So I enjoy cooking, but a lot of people know that because I'm part of the Koanis cooking team for Thibodeau. Yes. And we've won all sorts of awards. Um and I love mainly off of your recipes, right? Well, you know, sometimes the guys let me stir the pot. I'll say that. But um, I I do enjoy cooking, but I I can say that um what I am really good at is singing the 50 nifty states in alphabetical order.

SPEAKER_00 2:43

Okay. Is that a that's like a real thing? That's a song.

SPEAKER_01 2:47

Did you just ask me to sing it?

SPEAKER_00 2:49

Um you know what? We are going to divert momentarily from the five and five because this I gotta hear. Somebody the other day said, and I missed it, so I'm gonna take the opportunity right now because I meant to go back. They were like, I can say the alphabet backwards like faster than anybody. And at the end of the show, I wanted them to do it, and I forgot. So whoever that was, whatever guest that was, you're coming back for round two. But we're gonna take a momentary intermission, it's a little commercial break. Let's hear it.

SPEAKER_01 3:17

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada. Get out your choo-choo arms. New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming.

SPEAKER_00 4:22

Thank you. When did you learn that?

SPEAKER_01 4:24

Uh the sixth grade. Oh my goodness. Houston Independent School District, thank you very much.

SPEAKER_00 4:29

There you go. That was like that was impressive. I'm gonna tell you that you did not miss a beat. You got them all. I am impressed with you. At some point, we can do a sing-off. I actually have a preposition song that I knew. I learned in sixth grade, yeah. So um, isn't it funny though, how those things stick with you over the course of your life? Um, it's amazing.

SPEAKER_01 4:51

I feel like at some point, I am definitely gonna win a drinking game with that. Absolutely. And so I keep practicing. Okay. Yeah, I'm not letting you go.

SPEAKER_00 4:59

I'm keeping that in the back pocket on some sort of trivia thing. I'm gonna be like, let me whip out Christy's a ring on the here. I'm gonna play the Christie's ranging state song card. I'm your phone a friend. Oh, yes. My lifeline. Okay. Well, thank you very much. I love that. The least I can do. Well, I might know the answer to this now. You wake up tomorrow and you have a completely different career path. Is it singing the states or is it something else?

SPEAKER_01 5:26

Oh my, a career, you know, I think I would, if I had a do over and had to choose a different path, I think I would get into dermatology.

SPEAKER_00 5:40

Really?

SPEAKER_01 5:41

Yes. Think about it. All the dermatologists get all of these freebies to try, and they look magnificent. True. You know, I mean, everyone wants to look young, especially as we age. And I I I I think they were onto something choosing that career path. All right.

SPEAKER_00 6:04

You know, that's very true, though. They always have the best skin. They always have the best skin. Okay. Maybe. All right. Well, if if you decide collab is not your path, maybe dermatology is what's next. Or maybe one of the boys can go into dermatology.

SPEAKER_01 6:19

Good something.

SPEAKER_00 6:20

Right. It's always a good idea as well. Children out there. Help support your parents as we age. Pick a career that will help us along the way. All right. What's the simplest thing that can make you happy and put a smile on your face? Food is my love language.

SPEAKER_01 6:36

I love cooking for people and filling their belly fills my soul.

SPEAKER_00 6:43

Oh.

SPEAKER_01 6:44

Yeah. So if a friend is ill, I am going to be delivering them something. If we have a family gathering, it is always at my house. And when they ask what they can bring, they're not bringing food because I'm providing all of it. Um, so that it is absolutely that's that's my go-to. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:07

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 7:08

Is that all food is your love language? There isn't much food that I don't care for.

SPEAKER_00 7:13

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 7:14

I'll I'll do all the weird things. You know, I love raw oysters. I eat anchovies. Um, I'm not big on raw or uncooked yolks. Right. I don't I don't care for that. But other than that, it's just I love that.

SPEAKER_00 7:28

No, so craft macaroni and cheese in a box, you love it, is what I just heard.

SPEAKER_01 7:32

Spoken about this, Christine. There's life outside the box.

SPEAKER_00 7:39

That is a little bit of an inside joke. I happen to love me some Velveeta mac and cheese shells. So um, Christy does not think that that is the finest of the food groups. No. We will continue to disagree on that point.

SPEAKER_01 7:52

There's definitely something to be said about a homemade cheese sauce.

SPEAKER_00 7:55

Okay. Yeah, but still in the little silver bag. It's just amazing. All right. Last but not least, you are having dinner with your younger self. What advice are you giving them?

SPEAKER_01 8:09

I feel like um I spent a lot of time trying to please people. Um, I I feel like I am somewhat of a people pleaser. And you tend as a people pleaser to put yourself last in a lot of situations. Um and I'm a Pisces, I'm a I'm a giver all through and through. But just to take a moment to love yourself and give yourself grace and trust that you're making the right decisions. Great advice.

SPEAKER_00 8:43

Okay, great advice. Well, thank you for sharing a little bit about yourself and apparently your many talents beyond being CEO. Uh, but let's talk a little bit about Colab and about economic development. Want to make sure everybody knows the good things that are happening in the region. So um, let's start with really basics. For those who are out there watching and listening who do not know what Colab is, what is Colab?

SPEAKER_01 9:11

Okay, mom, I'm talking to you here. She still doesn't know exactly what I do. So um Colab is one of eight regional economic development organizations as defined by the state, LED, Louisiana Economic Development. So each region has a certain number of um parishes that that they advocate for and take care of and and provide services. And CoLab uh services the parishes of Assumption, LaFouche, St. Mary, and Terrabone. So we are the Bayou Region Economic Development Organization. Um and what is economic development? Because it's kind of a catch-all, you know, it's it's everything, but still what all at once?

SPEAKER_00 10:01

Yeah, no, and look, I think a lot of people would also say it is seemingly what everybody says is the answer to what ails our state right now. So tell us what is it?

SPEAKER_01 10:11

Yes, so for us, economic development is making sure that the business and industry who are currently here in the Bayou region, those are our top priority. We want to make sure that they can continue to grow and expand and prosper. So that's one leg of the chair. Um, additionally, we want to bring in new business and industry. So we do some business retention and expansion. Okay. And then we do some prospecting. You know, we want to bring in the newer businesses in the area. Um, we have a huge focus on workforce. So that's the third leg. Um, because business cannot grow and we can't bring in new businesses if we don't have the talent to support that. And then the fourth leg is uh quality of life or quality of place. Because you can have all of the industry and all of the talent, but if they don't have um good quality of life, good schools, good infrastructure, um, we've talked a lot about third places. I'd love to get into that a little bit. So things that would keep them here or attract new talent to the area. That's what we do for the Bayou region. And we work directly with our local partners. So each parish has their own local economic development arm. Um, and so we work directly hand in hand with them and also with LED to make sure that those four legs are taken care of for the Bayou region. Awesome.

SPEAKER_00 11:49

Well, very good. Thank you for that description and that explanation. I think that's really, really helpful. Um, so let's start off with many people might know um the agency and the organization that you just talked about under an old name, which was SLEC, which was the South Louisiana Economic Council, right? So you just recently, though, led the organization through this uh rebranding to what is now Colab. And I'm just wondering, can you talk a little bit about what inspired that transformation and why the rebranding and the name change? Yes.

SPEAKER_01 12:22

So um Sleck was about 35 years old. Um they started, I think, in the sometime in the 90s. Sleck had had been doing exactly the things that we were talking about. Um, and they were under one leader that entire time, Mr. Vic Lafont, who is a legend in the economic development space. He served as president of so many different uh regional and state economic boards. Um, and when he retired in October of last year, I thought this is the perfect time to rebrand, to reinvent. We really wanted to serve the four parish area in a greater way, and we decided we couldn't continue under the same name and say we're different. So we felt that it was a good time to really kind of take a step back, um, talk to our stakeholders, talk to our parish leaders, find out exactly what they wanted from the organization, um, and then do an entire rebrand. So it's not just, you know, a name change, um, it's more of a movement is kind of what I call it. So, and it's and we've been carrying that momentum um since we launched Colab in January of last year at Washington Mardi Gras.

SPEAKER_00 13:59

So this new uh momentum or movement that you've got going, what is it going to do in sort of from your perspective in terms of ushering in sort of a new economic development for the region? What does that look like?

SPEAKER_01 14:14

As one of eight regional economic development organizations in the state, I feel like some of the other regionals have a very strong presence and they have a lot of business and industry and organizations and associations kind of rallying around them. And I felt like that was lacking in this area. So the big thing for me is regional collaboration. It's one of my soapboxes that I stand on is, you know, bringing everyone together and speaking louder with one collective voice. And that's not diminishing other voices, but it's it's really collaborating so that when we speak, people hear us. This region um fuels and feeds the entire nation. And so we need to collaborate and get together and start acting like the big people that we are.

SPEAKER_00 15:15

Yeah, I think that's such a great point. And I know we've had conversations about that um between us and then with other folks within the community, is that there are a lot of competing voices at the table, especially when we're talking about recruitment of new businesses, um, even the retention and uh and retaining our current businesses and not having them relocate somewhere else. But in addition to that, resources. I mean, there isn't an endless pot of money out there. And so we have to make sure that we are at the table, that we are being heard, and that who we are as a region and the needs that we have here are being articulated to those who are in the positions to make decisions. And so I think um you're spot on in terms of it's much easier to become a collective where you put forward a single message that is with one voice and and loud as opposed to everyone kind of going in different directions and hoping to kind of break through the noise. And so I think that that is really important. You mentioned um just now one of the challenges, right, uh, that's sort of facing us. What are some other challenges and opportunities that you see for our region in the next few years?

SPEAKER_01 16:34

One of the challenges that we're facing is the outward migration of really good talent. Um, you know, for a very long time, this region has been built on some legacy industries. And we are not getting away from those legacy industries. We have embraced them. We are all about all of the above energy. So um our region has been rooted in oil and gas, but we have opportunities to expand our energy um programs to include things outside of oil and gas. And we've also been uh rooted in shipbuilding, for example. Um now we have the opportunity to add to that portfolio. We're not taking it away. Um, and we really want we really want to build upon what what we already have. You know, there's um there's golf craft now seronic in St. Mary Parish. They are building 150-foot unmanned Navy ships. Wow. They're building a couple of them right now, but with their expansion, they are planning to crank out one a day. Oh my god. Right here in St. Mary Parish. Wow. Um, and then you know, Bollinger is doing a lot of defense contracts with the Coast Guard. We have KB Machines right next door, who was almost exclusively oil and gas for quite some time with machine parts, and now they're doing uh aerospace.

SPEAKER_00 18:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:17

So we know how to do the legacy stuff, and now it's just pivoting a bit and adding more pieces to the puzzle so that we are not we're not so dependent on one industry. It's almost those transferable talents and skills.

SPEAKER_00 18:34

We know we talk about those with individuals who work, like what transferable skills do you have? And that is exactly it, taking the cornerstone of what we know how to do so very well in the industries that are those legacy industries, but looking forward to say, okay, we know how to do this well, and there is some applicability to this new thing, and let's go after that.

SPEAKER_01 18:55

And then going back to that talent piece, it's all about creating our own narrative. For a long time, other people outside of our region have been talking about us. We've been relying on other people to create the narrative. And when we come together with one voice and we write our own narrative and we get our own message out there, that will help diminish some of the outward migration. Because right now we are losing our best and brightest. Um, we are losing those who have graduated with a two or a four-year degree, or even a master's degree. Those are the ones who are leaving. Why are they leaving? Well, they say it's because of, you know, uh more opportunities elsewhere. We have the opportunities here. We just need to write our own narrative and talk about them. We are not just a blue-collar area, we have many white-collar positions in our region. And we we need to stand up and talk about them. The blue collar is extremely important. Um, we stand on that. We're gonna continue to fill those positions, we're gonna continue to need those positions, but it's time that we start writing the narrative about the opportunities that are here so that you don't have to leave and go get those opportunities elsewhere. There's new and shiny things in every area. And I feel like, you know, the the young the young graduate might say, Oh, look at that pretty shiny thing. We need to start uh boasting about our own shiny things that no one else has. Yeah. And I I think that that's what I'm most excited about is um is writing our own narrative.

SPEAKER_00 20:52

That is such a great point. Um, because I do think that sometimes uh our young professionals are lured away by opportunities. Nobody really ever clearly defines what those opportunities are, but supposedly they're there those happening somewhere else. But you're right, those things are happening right here, and I think we have not um really told that story very well, and so I think that that's important. And it so so let's take a minute and talk about because you know, I'm gonna always take an opportunity to talk about workforce and what we do here at Fletcher. Um, and Colab, you have been just phenomenal partners with us here at Fletcher in this work. I know you're doing some regional collaboration in workforce um with the team here and others in the community. But what are the challenges in workforce? What should we be focusing on? Um, I know it's some out migration. I'm sure it is um some alignment of the jobs that are out there to the workforce. I know that's one of the things we're seeing here at Fletcher, is that we have people out there and they are individuals who want to work, but maybe their skill set. Right, doesn't match some of the technological leaps we've seen in industry. And so you've got a lot of open jobs, you have a lot of people who want to work, but we've got to get them closer together, sort of in this realm. Um, but before you answer that question, too, I just wanted to note something you said that I think is really important for communities is that one of the things that I appreciate about this region is that there really really is a good mix of blue and white-collar jobs. So we are not one more than the other. And I think that balance is really what can make this region super successful. Um, because we're not reliant on a singular plant, singular industry where everybody in the community is just working in that one place. And and so goes that business, so goes the community. We have a diversity of that, which is really important. But kind of pivoting back, um, talk to me about workforce. What what do we need? Where are the opportunities on give me some advice? What should Fletcher be doing?

SPEAKER_01 23:05

Fletcher has done a fantastic job of providing um training and certifications and things at a moment's notice. You guys, you pivot.

SPEAKER_00 23:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:16

I mean, one foot is on the on the basketball court and the other foot is trying to figure out where to go next, and then providing that next opportunity for students or those who are already in the workforce. You know, I have uh a brother, 15 years younger, and um there are opportunities that I would love for him to be able to go after um in order to make more money. He's one of those people who it's works so much and is just making ends meet. Um, and so I would love for him to have a better opportunity locally.

SPEAKER_00 23:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:57

Um it's a matter of how can he continue to work the hours to to meet his financial obligations, but still be able to be upskilled or even reskilled and not miss time off of work.

SPEAKER_00 24:16

Right.

SPEAKER_01 24:17

Um, so I think that those are the things that maybe we could um consider one of the challenges and opportunities so that we can offer even more online classes or weekend type classes so that they can still meet their uh their current obligations, but continue to reskill and upskill for bigger and better opportunities, Love Gold.

SPEAKER_00 24:46

I do think there is such an opportunity, and I'm thinking about us here at Fletcher, right, to do those types of things. So specifically, um, and you know, thank you to everybody out in the community who completed a survey, but we did an online social survey, social media survey, and it was about an evening nursing program. The response was overwhelming. Over 280 people responded to that, and we heard a lot about what you're talking about. I have a full-time job. I need my full-time job. I have a family to support, I have, you know, house note, car note, all of these things. Um, but I want to reskill. I want to have access to a job that maybe has a higher wage, that's higher demand right now. But again, we need to do that more broadly, right? We need to look at every program that we offer to say, you know, is this something, is there a demand, is there a need to provide this education and training in something more than just eight to five Monday through Friday? Um, because we know that the working adult is gonna have that challenge. We like to say um oftentimes the greatest enemy of our students is time. They just don't have the time. So, so I know you mentioned a little earlier you want to talk a little bit about third places. So I'm gonna tee this up for you because I think it has to do with workforce and and it goes to what you mentioned a few minutes ago, which is this uh mythological opportunity that exists everywhere else. Um, we've talked about it, we've heard from a lot of the young professionals that they are desiring of some place, something, a community that is maybe not necessarily work, not necessarily home, but a third place. So could you talk a little bit about third places and and why you as an economic developer, you know, think that that's important.

SPEAKER_01 26:39

So third place, again, your your first place is home, your your second place is work. Where is your third place? Third places could be a library, a park, they could be a bar, you know, think of cheers. That's definitely a third place. Where is the third place for the Bayou region? And it's not going to be one, it's not a one size fits all. Again, this is writing our own narrative. Yes, you know, this area outside of the Bayou region or outside of Louisiana has an incredible walking trail. And this place has, you know, hiking in the mountains, but we're not talking about what we have already here that those places are envious about. It's our own shiny stuff that we need to talk about more. Um, but we do need to create more third places because that is the quality of life piece. That's that fourth leg of the of the chair that no matter how many job opportunities you have and how many talented people you have, if there's if there's nothing for them to do, if they don't have great schools for their children to attend, if you know, if if the roads and bridges aren't fantastic, um, or at least working, then it becomes an issue. And you need, you definitely need the quality of life to keep them here or attract them from outside here.

SPEAKER_00 28:03

So recently I had the opportunity to visit my son who lives in England now, and you know, we you hear uh a lot about the pubs in England. And so we wanted to go and see um what those were about. And I think the thing that struck me when I before I went, I thought of them more as a bar, right? This is they are so much more than that. They are really community hubs. I was thinking the those same exact words. You know, they are um aligned to your football, your soccer team that you love. They are where, you know, when we went in, people were playing cards, they were having dinner, they were visiting with friends, and to me, it was such the perfect representation of a third place, right? These are the places where people in those communities want to be, where they've established friendships and relationships and all of that. I totally agree that trying to help our community see what's available, see where they can get plugged in. We've talked recently with some young professionals, and I don't know that it's necessarily like build something and they will come, but it really is about having those foundational opportunities for connection that people really want. Even today, even though we like to talk a lot about, oh, your community on Facebook or social media, I think a lot of people still want that in person. I get to see and talk to somebody.

SPEAKER_01 29:27

And I think we're real good in in the region about creating a place for our seniors. They have their seniors very true, senior citizen centers and other things. And then the young families have the the children's museums and the parks. But what about the in-between? Yeah. And even what about our, you know, our high school age students? There's there's really nothing for for them to call a third place, unless, I mean, that's why a lot of them are so involved in athletics. Um, so there's definitely some opportunity for our our third places and our quality of life in the region.

SPEAKER_00 30:08

It used to be the mall for us back in the day. But I know still have a good mall. I'm dating myself. Right. I know. I do too, right? I love the idea. I don't know if you've seen it online where they're like, take all the malls and convert them into like uh retirement communities for Gen X. And I'm like, I am behind that 100%. So maybe one day. Maybe one day. So I know that Colab does not do everything in isolation. You are not out there just taking on the world, recruiting all the businesses, retaining. There are a lot of different organizations and agencies in the community you work with. Do you want to highlight, take a moment to highlight some of those partnerships and and what you feel like have been successes and wins for you all and for the region?

SPEAKER_01 30:53

Well, I want to first start within Colab. We have an incredible team. Um, Chief Operating Officer is Christian Bergeron from um formerly with Garrett Graves' office, the Bayou Region. Um, and he's just done a fantastic job. I I can't imagine hiring someone and not having to introduce this person to the outside world. And I I feel like we can walk into a room together, separate, and then meet up at the end of the day and talk about all the people that we spoke to. I don't have to introduce him to a single person. So that's been a real blessing. Um, we also have uh CTAC Inside Colab, which is the Coastal Technical Assistance Center. Um, and Paige Disclair and Bridget Marble do a great job of matching Louisiana coastal uh jobs opportunities for uh coastal protection and restoration jobs with Louisiana companies who are doing the work. And I think that that's incredibly important. Um, since their inception, probably five years ago or so, they have secured six hundred and ninety-nine million dollars worth of contract work for their clients. Wow. And that's a free service. So I just kind of wanted to highlight that. Yeah, for sure. Thank you for doing that. Yes, of course. And then um Linda Tabor and Alyssa Dubois in the office keep us rolling and um just soon to be Fletcher alum. I might add, huh?

SPEAKER_00 32:26

We have a future Fletcher alum in the city.

SPEAKER_01 32:28

That's right, Alyssa Dubois, absolutely, in in accounting. So I just wanted to give kudos to the team. And then, of course, we have uh Lori Blanc, who is our energy advisor, um, Cody Blanchard who does all things communication. We have incredible partnerships with all of our local EDOs. So TEDA, uh Lafouche Parish Economic Development, St. Mary Economic Development, and Assumptions Police Jury. They have um economic development committees. So we meet monthly with our local economic development partners. We also work very closely with the chambers through their workforce development uh committees and also with our industry associations, the Chafalaya Intercoastal Coalition in St. Mary, uh South Central Industrial Association, who has just recently combined with Bayou Industrial Group. So those um those organizations along with our higher ed, I think are our our main uh partners in all of this. And then we also have uh really good communication with some of the um community organizations as well, whether it's the Indian tribes um or you know the Bayou Community Foundation. All of those collectively together are we just woven together to make a great Bayou region.

SPEAKER_00 33:55

Awesome. Awesome. And thank you for mentioning CTAC. I wanted to make sure we got to that and we'll talk about that just here a little bit more. But let's just take a moment and do some future gazing. Okay. Um so obviously you're in the heart of this work every day. What do you see on the horizon for our region and maybe the next three to five years that people can get excited about and can say, wow, look at look at all the good stuff that's happening in this region.

SPEAKER_01 34:20

Yes. So I mentioned uh Saronic and their expansion. We had a a huge um announcement in in Terrabone with the neuro, um the neuro IO, and then um goodness, there's there's been so many, and then there's some that are still under NDAs that you know I can't tell you about. Um but there are some things coming. And what's exciting is that a lot of them are technology focused. And so I'm excited to see the area embracing technology, embracing AI. Um, we're all using it as part of our daily lives. And um, you know, Nichols even has their their gaming programs that um working out really well there. I know that you guys are standing up a cybersecurity. Um so technology is is definitely going to be woven into the fabric of the Bayou region um now and in the future.

SPEAKER_00 35:21

Fantastic. And and I'll just say I can't wait to hear us craft and tell the narrative. Yes. Um, I think that that's going to be a really amazing step here in the next probably a few months, if I had to guess. You're you're kind of uh uh take no prisoners, you're gonna get after it. So I know that that's gonna happen. Well, look, before we wrap it up, and I get to uh tell you a little bit about some things that I learned about you, right? So we wrap that up. I do want to make sure if individuals out there listening and watching want more information about Colab first, where do we go for that? Bayuregion.com.

SPEAKER_01 35:57

Um so Louisiana Economic Development has a program called Certified Sites. And that is a property, um, it it depends on the size. It's either a business site or an industrial site. Business sites are a little bit smaller, industrial sites are larger as far as acreage that are shovel ready. So, say a landowner has a piece of property and they're like, I don't know what to do with this. Other than sugarcane farming, which is incredibly important, our agriculture industry is the backbone in in the region. But other than sugarcane farming, you know, that this might make a great manufacturing site, another facility of some sort. What do I do? Well, contact us and then we go through a series of desktop analysis and then a lot of more in-depth analysis to make sure that um there's no Indian burial grounds, there's no pipelines under there that no one knew about, there's no wetlands mitigation that needs to be remedied. Um, and then once it gets the seal of approval from LED, it goes on a website. And then the site selectors, who are almost like agents for athletes, yeah, the site selectors are agents for these companies who are looking to either relocate or start a new facility, um they market those certified sites. So um when I started as president um at the end of October, uh we had three certified sites in the region. Now we have six. Awesome. And we have we have two more that are about to come online and another six behind that that are just chomping at the bit to get um to get on that inventory list.

SPEAKER_00 37:50

If we have some landowners out there who are interested, or somebody who's just like, I want more information about Colab. And I'm assuming they can also probably find some just general data and information about the region if they needed it.

SPEAKER_01 38:02

So there's also um an area on our website uh that local Intel comes in and does a lot of demographics and analysis. So Colab pays for that service, and then we share it with each of our local economic development offices, and they can put that on their website as well. So it will be um median income, it'll talk about education, um, it'll talk about opportunities in the region, and and that's a great resource for people to know about. Fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 38:37

And that's bayuregion.com. Um, CTAC. So if I have a business out there who's saying, wait, I'd like to have a conversation with somebody about how maybe I could gain access to at least learning more about the available uh work in the coastal arena, do they go to bayureegion.com or do they have their own website? Both. Okay.

unknown 38:58

All right.

SPEAKER_00 38:59

We will get that email address. And for all of you watching and listening, we will put all of these websites in our show notes. So if you would like to um connect with either the collab team or the CTAC team, um that information will be available in the show notes. So all right, let's bring it home. I have, oh, I'm just gonna pepper you with questions. You took one of them, okay, which was I knew that there were, you know, multiple hats you wear, one of them being a little chef's hat. Um I don't know. I think I'm gonna have to get you some sort of state's hat. Maybe it'll be a representation, but um, is there a crown in the closet? I mean, don't we all? Was there a previous crown um given to you? Did I get that right? Weren't you on Nichols Homecoming?

SPEAKER_01 39:49

I did not wear the crown, but I was on the Nichols Homecoming court in 1910.

SPEAKER_00 39:58

Just a few years ago. You missed that date. Okay. Well, you're still a queen. Yes. Thank you. Okay. Um I also understand that uh broccoli is not your friend. Is that you you um maybe broke your mouth? Oh.

SPEAKER_01 40:19

I didn't know you were gonna use this against me. So what does one eat on the beach in Grand Isle? Well, just we we had we had some some raw vegetables that we were, you know, just snacking on with a cold beverage of sort. And um, yeah, so I took a took a bite of the broccoli and heard something crunch and crack, and it wasn't the broccoli. So I did something to my jaw and um had to go through a series of of doctors and dentists. The final outcome was I did not have to have my jaw wired shut. Well, that's good.

SPEAKER_00 41:05

Oh, here we are, absolutely. And let that be a lesson to everyone. Vegetables are only good when they're soft and fried. Okay. No, exactly, with ranch dressing. I'm looking at you, flanigans. I'm just saying. Um, you know, I think that the the veggies need all of the nutrients cooked out of them before they are not a danger to humanity. I now agree with this statement. I'm glad you could get on board. I will win you over on the crack macaroni and cheese yet. It'll happen. It'll happen. Well, look, thank you so much for joining us today on the podcast. We all hope that you enjoyed learning more about Colab and all the wonderful things that are happening in this economic development region. I think we just continue to see so much hope and so much opportunity ahead of us. So be sure to check out the show notes. Be sure to uh get in touch with Colab and CTEC. Um, lots going on, lots of ways to plug in and get involved and be a part of helping move our future forward, even if it is you have some suggestions on third places. Uh, but check those show notes out. And uh in the meantime, be sure to like and follow us wherever you get your podcasts. And just want to say thank you once again for being here with us today. Thank you to our audience for joining in for this latest episode of Bridging the Bayou, the podcast of Fletcher Technical Community College. Thank you for listening to Bridging the Bayou, the podcast of Fletcher Technical Community College. Be sure to like and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.