[3:43] everyone would please have their

[3:45] seats members and those in the

[3:47] back. I'm gonna call the

[3:49] meeting to order. The committee

[3:50] clerk has taken a silent roll

[3:51] call and a quorum has been

[3:52] established

[3:55] there being a quorum established

[3:56] I recognize the co-chair for a

[3:58] motiondamir, I move that the

[4:01] minutes from the meeting held on

[4:03] August 9,2026 be approved. The

[4:05] question is on the motion that

[4:07] the minutes from August 9,2026

[4:08] be approved. all those in favor

[4:08] say aye.

[4:11] those opposed no in the opinion

[4:13] of the chair the ayes have it. I

[4:14] declare the motion adopted.

[4:17] the next item on the agenda is a

[4:18] presentation on the success of

[4:19] the underderwood Smith teaching

[4:21] scholarship from Doctor Sarah

[4:24] Tucker, Chancellor of the WvHEPc

[4:25] Good morning Chancellor. Good

[4:27] morning Mrs Chairman. thank you

[4:28] all for having me here today and

[4:29] I am really excited to get to

[4:31] present about this particular

[4:35] scholarship today. Um, in2019

[4:37] you all made some pretty

[4:39] significant changes to the

[4:40] Underwood Smith Teacher

[4:41] scholarship programme. You

[4:43] increased that grant award.

[4:44] let me go through

[4:44] it quickly.

[4:47] well essentially you made

[4:49] this the most competitive

[4:50] scholarship in the state of West

[4:53] Virginia and so the idea was how

[4:55] do weta attract and retain

[4:57] teachers to the state of West

[4:58] Virginia. How do we make sure

[5:01] that they stay instate teaching

[5:03] in high demand fields. And so

[5:05] what you did was you provided a

[5:09] grant for25 teachers per cohort

[5:10] annually. so when we have all

[5:12] four cohorts that's100 students

[5:12] at a time

[5:15] It's10,000 dollars a year up

[5:19] to40,000 dollars. It is a

[5:21] stackable scholarship so if a

[5:23] student gets promise they still

[5:25] get10,000 dollars for Underwood

[5:27] Smith. If they get HEgp they

[5:28] still get10,000 dollars for

[5:28] Underwood Smith.

[5:33] It requires students to teach in

[5:35] the state for five years after

[5:36] they graduate

[5:39] they have to be a teacher in a

[5:41] high needs field. the high needs

[5:42] field is identified in code

[5:45] that special education,

[5:48] mathematics, science or early

[5:48] childhood education

[5:52] or elementary education I'm

[5:52] sorry

[5:57] the students move through four

[5:59] rounds of a selection process.

[6:00] so the first round is to apply

[6:01] for the scholarship

[6:04] The second round they have GPA

[6:06] and test scores applied we start

[6:07] whittling down the number of

[6:11] students. then we bring in an

[6:12] outside committee that outside

[6:15] committee scores an essay that

[6:16] each of the students write about

[6:17] why they want to become a

[6:19] teacher and then we whittle that

[6:21] group down to about30 to40

[6:23] students and then we get to

[6:25] that30 to40 we say take your

[6:26] essay and turn it into a video.

[6:30] and explain to us why you want

[6:32] to become a public school

[6:32] teacher in west Virginia.

[6:35] and they do that and then we

[6:36] select25 students at the end.

[6:41] so far our first cohort

[6:42] graduated from college in2024.

[6:47] So far we have42 Underwood Smith

[6:49] teaching scholars who are

[6:51] currently teaching in a West

[6:53] Virginia classroom in and public

[6:55] education. Now why42 and not50.

[6:57] While some students went to

[6:59] graduate school. Some students

[7:01] got into the teaching field and

[7:02] they were freshmen and they were

[7:03] like you know what I don't want

[7:05] to do this anymore so they

[7:07] changed majors just like you

[7:08] know you would see normally but

[7:10] we have42 students who are

[7:12] currently teaching in the state

[7:12] of west Virginia

[7:14] so I want to talk with you a

[7:16] little bit about the pipeline of

[7:19] these students. So in2024 we

[7:22] had111 eligible applicants

[7:23] who we did not award

[7:24] 111

[7:29] of those111 students 94

[7:31] eventually enrolled in a public

[7:33] higher education institution in

[7:35] West Virginia. Now I am certain

[7:37] that more of those enrolled in a

[7:38] private school I'm certain more

[7:39] of those went out of state. I

[7:40] just can't measure how many

[7:41] there were. I know that 94

[7:43] enrolled in a public higher

[7:44] education institution in West

[7:44] Virginia.

[7:48] In2025 we actually had220

[7:48] applicants.

[7:49] 220

[7:56] of the22167 were eligible. The

[7:57] majority of those who were not

[8:00] eligible were actually college

[8:00] students

[8:03] who decided they wanted to go

[8:04] into the teaching field

[8:07] but this program is for high

[8:09] school students who are entering

[8:10] college

[8:13] so we had to limit a number of

[8:14] those students because they were

[8:15] not eligible based on that

[8:19] criteria alone. So167 eligible

[8:21] applicants were not awarded the

[8:22] Underwood Smith scholarship

[8:26] of those118 enrolled in a public

[8:28] West Virginia higher education

[8:30] institution. We then went on and

[8:33] looked to see what fields they

[8:35] were going into and the vast

[8:36] majority of those students all

[8:37] enrolled in teacher education

[8:39] when they matriculated on to

[8:41] college. So I give you these

[8:42] numbers because these students

[8:43] are serious this is what they

[8:44] want to do for their vocation

[8:47] they're not just students who

[8:48] are sitting around thinking oh

[8:49] let me apply for every

[8:51] scholarship under the sun. These

[8:53] are students who really want to

[8:55] go into the teaching profession.

[8:57] um, and you know this this

[8:58] scholarship is terrific but

[9:00] we're all obviously limited in

[9:01] the number of students that we

[9:02] can award.

[9:07] So as of this state we've had57

[9:09] underderwood Smith scholars who

[9:11] have graduated.gain, we have42

[9:12] that are teaching in West

[9:13] Virginia classrooms some of that

[9:15] lag between the42 and57

[9:18] is that a lot of these students

[9:20] participate in therow your own

[9:21] program that you all know about

[9:24] through K1w2. So they're getting

[9:26] dual credits in teacher

[9:27] education while they're still in

[9:29] high school so we had a number

[9:30] of students who graduated early

[9:34] and who just haven't had time

[9:35] to get into the teaching

[9:37] profession yet so we'll see

[9:38] these numbers go up this fall

[9:39] and we can see how many more

[9:40] students go in.

[9:43] we also have 8 of our graduates

[9:44] who have gone on to a

[9:44] master'sgre program in

[9:44] education.

[9:48] So where are the42 working

[9:51] Currently they're working in22

[9:53] different counties you can see

[9:55] in your map the spread across

[9:56] the state it's a pretty good

[9:56] spread.

[9:59] we have students in lots of

[10:02] counties from the you know far

[10:03] west to the far east to the

[10:04] northern panhandle to the

[10:05] southern part of the state.

[10:07] in some of those counties we

[10:09] have multiple students so that's

[10:11] why they're only22 and not42,

[10:13] but I expect that this spread

[10:15] will continue to grow as we have

[10:16] more and more students graduate.

[10:21] so now I'm gonna do something a

[10:22] little different. those of you

[10:23] who are used to seeing me in

[10:24] front of you know that I'm very

[10:25] data heavy. I'm about to be very

[10:27] not data heavy because I want

[10:29] you to see the students that I

[10:31] get to see and I want you to see

[10:33] how amazing they are and how

[10:35] dedicated they are. So this is

[10:36] Lauren Marquardt, Lauren

[10:37] graduated from Wheeling Park

[10:39] High School gowheeling. Anyone

[10:40] hears from wheeling? I am.

[10:43] she we did an interview with

[10:45] Lauren to see what was

[10:46] important about the Underwood

[10:48] Smith scholarship for her. why

[10:50] it was important in her life and

[10:51] in her graduation. She of course

[10:52] talked about the financial

[10:53] assistance

[10:55] but she also talked about the

[10:57] confidence that it built in her

[10:58] decision to become a teacher.

[11:00] We don't just give these

[11:01] kids10,000 dollars a year.

[11:04] We bring them in as a cohort. we

[11:05] make them feel special. we have

[11:07] a banquet every year for them

[11:09] where they come and learn about

[11:11] what they're about to embark on.

[11:12] We give them a mentor teacher

[11:13] and that mentor teacher works

[11:15] with them for four years. That

[11:17] teacher helps them understand

[11:19] how to apply what they're

[11:20] learning in the classroom to the

[11:21] actual classroom where they're

[11:22] going to be teaching.

[11:25] And Lauren had a particularly

[11:27] good mentor and she talked a lot

[11:29] about how that connection with

[11:30] her mentor helped her in the

[11:30] classroom when she got there.

[11:33] how it gave her the freedom to

[11:35] be to be able to focus on being

[11:36] the best teacher she could be.

[11:39] and then really interestingly

[11:40] because of this scholarship

[11:42] Lauren was able to graduate not

[11:43] just with a bachelor's degree

[11:44] but also with a master's degree

[11:46] with $0 in debt.

[11:53] So one of her quotes that she

[11:54] provided us was that it reminded

[11:55] me that teaching is an important

[11:57] profession and motivated me to

[11:59] work even harder to become the

[12:00] kind of educator my students

[12:01] deserve.

[12:05] Today Lauren is a second grade

[12:06] teacher in Suncrest Elementary

[12:06] School in Morgantown.

[12:09] she says that the investment

[12:12] that you all made in her in

[12:12] going to college

[12:15] is going to be an investment in

[12:16] all of the students that she

[12:16] teaches in the future.

[12:19] She's building relationships

[12:21] with students and families and

[12:22] helping the young people of West

[12:22] Virginia recognize their own

[12:23] potential.

[12:27] Now I want you to meet Sam.

[12:30] Sam moved to McDowell County at

[12:31] the age of 9

[12:32] his

[12:35] concentration and focus of

[12:38] interest has been on creating

[12:39] math and he wants to be a math

[12:40] and history teacher in McDowell

[12:41] County.

[12:45] um, so Sam told us his story and

[12:46] his video you remember the

[12:47] fourth round is that students

[12:49] provided videos they are amazing

[13:06] OK. so here's why I want to be a

[13:06] teacher

[13:09] When I was 9 years old my family

[13:12] moved from Ohio to McDowell

[13:12] County, West Virginia.

[13:16] to serve in the mission field to

[13:17] bring teachers to McDowell

[13:18] County an area that desperately

[13:19] needed them

[13:23] when I moved here I instantly

[13:24] fell in love with the community.

[13:25] I fell in love with the people,

[13:26] I fell in love with the area.

[13:28] my dream is to teach in Mcdowell

[13:29] County schools

[13:33] I could really serve to a need.

[13:35] If I get the scholarship I would

[13:36] use it to be able to go to a

[13:38] school in Parkersburg and I

[13:39] would be able to get my

[13:40] education degree and double

[13:40] major in history and math.

[13:43] both of those areas we need

[13:45] teachers desperately in our

[13:46] community

[13:49] I'm going to adapt a very

[13:50] relational teaching style. I

[13:51] love developing relationships

[13:52] with people

[13:56] if you don't know someone it's

[13:56] very hard to learn from them

[13:59] my upbringing has taught me to

[14:00] be a caring and loving person.

[14:03] you never know what a person has

[14:04] been through in their life so

[14:05] you cannot just judge a person

[14:07] based on their appearance or how

[14:09] they may act in a certain

[14:10] situation you have to truly know

[14:10] them

[14:13] in the classroom I want to have

[14:14] a very powerful personality.

[14:17] when I speak I want kids to be

[14:18] able to understand that I have

[14:19] something important to say and I

[14:20] want them to be drawn to me

[14:23] in my teaching style I also plan

[14:25] to be very hands on one thing

[14:27] that I feel is very undervalued

[14:29] especially in math is relating

[14:30] math concepts to real world.

[14:33] I want to stress that I'm not

[14:35] just here to take this40,000

[14:36] dollars, spend my five years in

[14:37] west Virginia and there just bol

[14:38] to some other place. I've really

[14:39] been touched by this community

[14:42] down here my goal is to live and

[14:42] just give back to as much as

[14:43] possible.

[14:45] just know that if you give me

[14:47] the scholarship it will not be

[14:48] wasted and you can look back for

[14:50] years to come with pride knowing

[14:51] that you were able to positively

[14:52] affect southern west Virginia

[14:52] and McDow County.

[14:53] thank you.

[15:11] Hi, my name is Isabellaoge and

[15:12] I'm a

[15:20] So todayamm is living on his

[15:21] dream. He has returned to

[15:22] McDowell County

[15:25] he is teaching in Riverview High

[15:26] School and he is a math teacher.

[15:27] it's pretty remarkable

[15:31] going to give you one more

[15:32] student

[15:34] and one more video. I have

[15:35] hundreds of these it took a lot

[15:37] to figure out which two to show

[15:39] you. I figured you didn't have

[15:40] enough time to watch hundreds of

[15:41] them so I chose two that I

[15:42] thought were or we chose two

[15:42] that we thought were pretty good

[15:45] this is Bailey Bailey was in

[15:47] the2024 cohort of students so

[15:49] she is still in college

[15:52] Bailey's passion is for helping

[15:53] special needs students because

[15:55] their older brother has autism

[15:57] and she wanted to make sure that

[15:59] teachers for kids who had autism

[16:01] were able to reach them the same

[16:02] way that some of his teachers

[16:02] were able to reach him.

[16:04] and so let me show you Bailey's

[16:05] video.

[16:09] I may not have been born here

[16:10] but I've lived here since I was

[16:12] one in West Virginia will always

[16:13] be my home. I want to make an

[16:15] impact on the kids teaching

[16:17] elementary special education

[16:18] right here in the great state of

[16:20] west Virginia. We interrupt this

[16:21] program to bring you a special

[16:22] report

[16:25] justin we've just gotten word

[16:27] that Baileiger of Bruce and

[16:28] Mose, West Virginia is going to

[16:29] make a huge difference in this

[16:31] state by becoming a top educator

[16:32] in the field of elementary

[16:34] special education with more on

[16:35] this developing story let's get

[16:36] right to the sourceurer herself

[16:37] Bailey

[16:40] hi, thank you. Several months

[16:41] ago I committed to West Virginia

[16:43] University and will be majoring

[16:45] in elementary education with

[16:46] minors in special education

[16:48] inequine therapy. I have a

[16:49] passion for teaching because

[16:51] I've always loved kids and

[16:52] particularly those with special

[16:54] needs. My older brother has

[16:55] autism and was diagnosed right

[16:57] before I was born. I've grown up

[16:59] seeing his struggles and want to

[17:01] be the one to help kids like him

[17:03] be successful. It's personal for

[17:04] me. I care too much not to help.

[17:06] Many people feel that you need

[17:07] to be a leader in order to be an

[17:09] effective teacher. your thoughts

[17:10] on that? Yes.

[17:13] I'm a natural leader. I'm the

[17:13] coditor in chief on my yearbook

[17:15] and work with the younger staff

[17:17] to teach them everything that

[17:18] goes into producing our

[17:19] yearbook. I am also the

[17:21] secretary for my FFfa chapter

[17:22] and I helped lead the

[17:26] I understand that you are a

[17:28] finalist for the prestigious

[17:30] underwoodsmith teaching scholars

[17:31] programme. Why do you feel you

[17:32] deserve this award?

[17:35] I don't plan on teaching in west

[17:36] virginia for five years. I plan

[17:37] on teaching in west virginia my

[17:38] entire career.

[17:39] I'm not becoming a teacher for

[17:41] the schedule I'm becoming a

[17:43] teacher for the students. I feel

[17:45] like it helps students reach the

[17:46] greatest potential for figuring

[17:46] out

[17:49] every child learns the same and

[17:51] it's necessary to figure out

[17:52] what works best for each

[17:52] student.

[17:53] I have the patience

[17:58] Are there any other ways you

[17:58] will help your future students

[17:59] be successful?

[18:02] Oh yes, I want to make school

[18:04] fun and interesting so my

[18:05] students are excited with

[18:07] special ed no two days are the

[18:09] same. I will thrive in this type

[18:10] of situation and I know I can

[18:11] help my students flourish.

[18:13] Many people say they have

[18:15] someone they look up to that has

[18:16] shown them the type of teacher

[18:17] they want to be. Do you have a

[18:18] specific person that stands out

[18:19] for you?

[18:22] absolutely it's Miss Saggs my

[18:24] yearbook teacher. She's shown me

[18:26] what being a teacher really is

[18:27] she cares so much for all of her

[18:29] students and she shows it in so

[18:31] many ways she makes learning so

[18:32] much fun

[18:34] I want to be that teacher, the

[18:36] teacher that makes kids excited

[18:36] to come to school and learn.

[18:39] Bailey, thank you for sharing

[18:41] your story. Best of luck to you.

[18:42] Now back to our regular

[18:42] scheduled program

[18:47] According to Oxford

[18:56] So Bailey did an interview on

[18:57] Talkline after she was

[18:59] selected and she said it's

[19:01] really big because I'm actually

[19:03] putting myself through college

[19:04] it's going to help me so much to

[19:04] have this scholarship.

[19:11] and as you heard the iveyear

[19:13] commitment doesn't affect me

[19:14] because I plan to stay in West

[19:15] Virginia. I love it here and I

[19:16] want to see improvement.

[19:19] So this presentation is really

[19:21] just sort of a victory lap for

[19:23] all of you. I want to thank you

[19:24] for this scholarship I want to

[19:25] thank you for providing these

[19:27] students the opportunities that

[19:29] you have provided them. I want

[19:31] you to know what a trickledown

[19:33] effect these scholarships are

[19:35] going to have on our future

[19:36] students here in west Virginia

[19:38] and the kids that are going to

[19:39] come after them and that are

[19:40] going to be taught by these

[19:40] incredible educators

[19:43] I also know that we hear lots of

[19:45] negative things about West

[19:46] Virginia. look at these kids

[19:49] they're amazing. I mean these

[19:51] are amazing students and we have

[19:52] hundreds of them that apply

[19:53] every year that all want to stay

[19:55] here and all want to teach and

[19:57] all want to do better for the

[19:58] state of West Virginia I hope

[20:00] that they inspire you as much as

[20:01] they inspire me every time

[20:04] we get to get together with

[20:04] these students

[20:07] at the end of at the banquet

[20:08] that we do every year our

[20:09] masters of ceremony a woman

[20:11] named Michelle Marlowe puts

[20:12] together a quote

[20:15] that she gives to the teachers

[20:17] to try to inspire that cohort of

[20:18] teachers for the you know the

[20:19] rest of their teaching career

[20:21] and so I thought this quote was

[20:22] really poignant. This is the

[20:23] quote for this year

[20:25] Education is not the filling of

[20:26] the pail but the lighting of a

[20:27] fire.

[20:29] that's what this scholarship has

[20:31] done for these students the

[20:33] scholarship has lit a fire

[20:34] underneath them to be better

[20:36] teachers and hopefully it will

[20:38] light a fire under them as they

[20:39] teach and their students as they

[20:40] teach

[20:43] um, to work harder to try harder

[20:45] and to be better west virginians

[20:46] so thank you all I'm happy to

[20:46] answer

[20:57] Thank you chancellor very much

[20:58] great presentation I'm wondering

[20:59] if you might be able to come

[21:00] back to us with some

[21:05] madede a decision that they want

[21:15] associated with that certainly

[21:19] these students leaving high

[21:20] school maybe

[21:23] grow your own program but

[21:43] go through that transition. Yep

[21:47] are there further questions for

[21:48] the chancellor?

[21:50] the cochair has a question.

[21:51] Chancellor Tucker.

[21:53] can you tell me I

[22:10] to help

[22:13] ur r ent ly no but could I

[22:14] figure it out? Yes.

[22:16] I will thank you

[22:21] that are there further questions

[22:22] for the

[22:24] delegate Hornby

[22:26] thank you madam Chair

[22:30] Unlike the vice chair I I don't

[22:31] understand the the the financing

[22:33] out can you explain with with

[22:35] where the financing comes from

[22:37] and it does the legislature

[22:39] provide you with yearly funding

[22:40] for this scholarship we

[22:43] top of my head I'm trying to

[22:45] think of what that is. I don't

[22:46] know. I'll find out they will

[22:47] find out for you in just a

[22:48] second we have an annual

[22:52] appropriation that funds um,25

[22:55] students per cohort. so we have

[22:57] at any given time once the

[22:58] program is up and running100

[22:58] students.

[23:01] roughly a million dollars per

[23:02] year

[23:02] roughly

[23:08] and you have over200

[23:12] roughly applicants that are

[23:13] eligible every single year. Last

[23:16] year we had220 applicants of

[23:19] those167 were eligible because

[23:21] the difference between the167

[23:23] and the220 was largely that they

[23:24] were students who were enrolled

[23:25] in college and the eligible

[23:26] applicants have to be a high

[23:27] school senior.

[23:29] you think that

[23:33] allowing those students that are

[23:34] already in college who are

[23:35] looking to get into the teaching

[23:39] career program would be

[23:42] beneficial to to to the program

[23:45] to allow that eligibility do it

[23:47] it's a matter of without an

[23:49] increase of cost it's a it's a

[23:51] matter of what you restrict

[23:52] right? So

[23:53] it would come down to the budget

[23:57] thank you chancellor it thank

[23:58] you madam Chair thank you

[23:58] delegate. Are there further

[23:59] questions for the chancellor?

[24:01] it's1.48 million ann

[24:05] Thank you thank you very much

[24:11] The next item on the agenda,

[24:13] I do believe we have several

[24:15] people here to speak so if

[24:16] everyone that plans to speak at

[24:17] the podium could just make their

[24:18] way down, that would be

[24:18] great.

[24:27] So the next item on the agenda

[24:28] is Reshore West Virginia which

[24:30] is reshoring opportunities in

[24:31] Westvirginia and we have several

[24:33] people here to speak what

[24:35] I'll have each of you do is if

[24:36] you could please just state your

[24:37] name and title when you step up

[24:39] to the podium so everybody knows

[24:40] who is speaking

[24:43] Mr. Bisssett, will you start? OK

[24:51] And you may begin whenever

[24:53] you're ready. awesome. good

[24:54] morning. My name is Bill Bissett

[24:55] I'm president of the weststerio

[24:57] Manufacturers association. great

[24:59] to be with you today I wanna

[25:00] thank the members of the joint

[25:00] committee as well as its

[25:01] leadership for allowing us to

[25:03] present reshore West Virginia to

[25:05] you some of you heard about it

[25:07] but I think it's an important

[25:08] program not just to grow

[25:10] manufacturing in west Virginia

[25:11] which I think is in all of our

[25:13] interests but also a way to give

[25:15] my members the building blocks

[25:17] the materials that they need to

[25:18] make their products

[25:19] which is critical

[25:22] that's literally one of the most

[25:23] biggest cons one of the biggest

[25:25] concerns I hear from my members

[25:27] is supply chain issues or

[25:29] markets and either way Reshore

[25:31] westrginia really benefits us in

[25:32] that way you'll hear a lot more

[25:33] about this in a moment but I

[25:35] also want thank delegate

[25:35] Laurie Whitman for her interest

[25:37] in this because there's an

[25:38] interesting educational

[25:39] component to this program which

[25:40] is what brings us here today

[25:45] so when President Trump took

[25:47] office a new word was

[25:48] injected into the collective

[25:49] consciousness and that word was

[25:50] tariffs

[25:53] and some of my members were very

[25:54] concerned some of them were very

[25:55] supportive oferrets because they

[25:57] have a domestic to the United

[25:59] States supply chain and market

[26:01] so it affected our membership

[26:02] very differently

[26:05] but that said the concern was it

[26:06] created a lot of uncertainty

[26:08] which business much like us

[26:08] individuals do not like

[26:11] and that uncertainty was driven

[26:13] by litigation by the on and off

[26:15] nature of a tariffs by a

[26:17] changing landscape that seemed

[26:19] to continue but when you have a

[26:20] challenge how can you turn that

[26:20] into an opportunity?

[26:23] and the way you do that is

[26:24] finding a person with expertise.

[26:25] finding a person that has that

[26:26] granular knowledge of the issue

[26:29] who could help us take advantage

[26:31] of it and benefit West Virginia

[26:33] and that person is Ed Ryan he's

[26:35] a west virginian he's educated

[26:36] from Mars University and he has

[26:38] a tremendous knowledge not only

[26:38] of US customs

[26:40] but international logistics

[26:43] and what I'm especially proud

[26:45] about Rehore West Virginia is Ed

[26:47] brings this to westvirginia he's

[26:49] lived out of state he's returned

[26:50] home we're happy to have him

[26:52] here but when I met with him

[26:53] more than a year ago he started

[26:55] explaining how we connect our

[26:56] manufacturers with each other

[26:58] instate

[27:01] to not only supply the materials

[27:03] they need but also possibly sell

[27:05] their products in state as well

[27:07] in short it's much better that

[27:09] we get these materials from Clay

[27:10] County than China.

[27:13] how do we do that and what's

[27:14] interesting about manufacturing

[27:15] a lot of my members don't know

[27:17] another manufacturer 20 minutes

[27:19] away we're probably the closest

[27:21] thing to an interconnection of

[27:23] manufacturing our association in

[27:25] the state but using technology

[27:27] using the custom codes using

[27:29] many things that Ed understands

[27:30] very very well he's assembled

[27:31] this team that I think allows us

[27:33] to not only benefit

[27:34] manufacturing the state and

[27:34] economic development

[27:37] but also train the next

[27:38] generation

[27:39] in how they can work in this

[27:40] field and benefit our state as

[27:41] well

[27:42] without further ado Ed Ryan

[27:47] Thank you Bill

[27:50] just a special thanks to

[27:50] delegate

[27:53] Diman for allowing us to

[27:57] our our story

[28:01] just being a teacher and being a

[28:04] delegate at the same time

[28:05] what an amazing balance I know

[28:06] you're probably missing your

[28:09] thank them for us for your

[28:11] service here at the capitol

[28:13] I'm met Ryan I'm the founder

[28:17] of Reshore West Virginia I

[28:18] wanna to talk to you about our

[28:18] course

[28:20] I'm so excited about the

[28:21] educational offering that

[28:23] we're providing through Reshore

[28:25] West Virginia and I think the

[28:27] best way for me to do that is to

[28:28] give you several different

[28:30] through so I've brought up

[28:34] a bunch of my friends and

[28:37] partners to talk to you about

[28:39] Reshore West Virginia and the

[28:40] educational piece and how they

[28:43] serve to be a part of that so

[28:44] with that I'd like to

[28:46] ask Mr Matt Turner to come up

[28:47] from higherducation

[28:48] Policycommission

[28:53] Thank you Ed. thank you chairs

[28:55] and members speaking on

[28:56] behalf of the higher education

[28:58] Policy commission, I'm not sure

[29:00] if it's evident yet but Ed has a

[29:02] tremendous amount of enthusiasm

[29:03] for the state and certainly for

[29:05] this project and he's

[29:06] challenging us he really is and

[29:09] trying to adapt platforms

[29:10] that were not initially

[29:12] intended for one of his academic

[29:14] programs to to make it happen

[29:15] and we continue to work with him

[29:16] but

[29:18] you know this is a real

[29:19] opportunity for the state

[29:19] building a workforce that

[29:21] understands the economics and

[29:24] practical skills that are

[29:25] bringing manufacturing supply

[29:27] chains back home and we

[29:28] certainly believe this is

[29:29] something that west Virginia

[29:30] higher education should support

[29:32] so as I said our statewide

[29:34] online platform our online

[29:35] learning platform is called

[29:37] WVrocks. it was designed for

[29:39] returning students and has

[29:40] helped so many countless

[29:43] students who are entering

[29:43] higher education again through

[29:45] the region's bachelor of artts

[29:46] program to to

[29:47] try to get them on a the fast

[29:49] forward track so that they can

[29:51] complete their degrees and we're

[29:52] working with Ed and his team to

[29:56] use that platform to try to make

[29:57] his coursework that will help

[29:59] students understand the

[30:01] reassuring concept to make that

[30:02] available statewide. he's

[30:03] already successfully implemented

[30:05] it at at least one of our

[30:05] schools I think what two is that

[30:08] rightd University of Charleston

[30:11] and and Wvu and we're trying to

[30:12] adapt our platform to make that

[30:13] a statewide option for that so

[30:17] that work continues but we

[30:18] really are thrilled with Ed's

[30:19] enthusiasm for this and bringing

[30:21] the right partners together and

[30:22] we're we're proud to support

[30:22] this this effort and

[30:25] look forward to continuing to

[30:27] work with the reshore project to

[30:28] see how we can open this up to

[30:29] even more institutions across

[30:30] the state so we're we're pleased

[30:32] to support that and and eager to

[30:33] see what the next steps are

[30:34] thank you all

[30:39] Um, next I'd like to bring up

[30:43] Doctor John Saldanaha, Doctor

[30:45] Saldanaha is the chair of the

[30:47] supply chain management program

[30:48] at West Virginia University.

[30:48] Johnn.

[30:55] Good morning John Saldanna,

[30:56] professor of supply chain Man

[30:59] andc's chair of global supply

[31:00] chain Man.

[31:00] so

[31:03] listening to Ed when he first

[31:05] pitched this to me I said you

[31:06] know this is perfect because in

[31:07] this current s business

[31:09] environment strategic sourcing

[31:10] is particularly challenging

[31:14] The long established trade

[31:15] routes that we have currently

[31:17] have been altered by

[31:18] geopolitical forces

[31:20] we have taken for granted supply

[31:20] sources

[31:23] existing decades that are now

[31:25] risky due to historic

[31:26] restructuring of tradegre

[31:26] agreements

[31:29] consumer demand has also become

[31:31] much harder to predict due to

[31:32] constantly changing markets

[31:37] so the only certainty in today's

[31:38] business environment is

[31:39] uncertainty.

[31:42] the supply chain management

[31:43] program at the Chambers College

[31:45] of Business is very proud of our

[31:48] graduates100% place and rate at

[31:51] global brand name ins companies

[31:53] like General Electric, General

[31:55] Motors including companies here

[31:57] in our state toyota Lockheed

[31:59] Martin. We also very proud of

[32:00] our graduates being placed at

[32:03] high impact institutions like

[32:05] Georgetown Carnegie Mellon

[32:06] after they graduate.

[32:09] sayingying this we believe that

[32:10] the potential of Reho West

[32:11] Virginia's coursework

[32:13] to contribute to our students

[32:15] career successes in this new

[32:16] business of mind with is

[32:16] critical.

[32:21] today supply chain mans consider

[32:23] supply chains as malleable

[32:24] they're not fixed anymore.

[32:26] because of this unreliable

[32:26] sourcing

[32:30] and accelerated clock speed of

[32:30] market changes that happen

[32:34] all of these give rise to

[32:35] requirement for new sources of

[32:36] supply.

[32:39] so going back to the literature

[32:41] I looked at what are the

[32:41] advantages of reassuring

[32:44] over the relatively low cost of

[32:44] offshore sources of supply.

[32:49] Most importantly is lower cost

[32:50] of supply chain logistics

[32:51] obviouslyviously lower

[32:53] transportation costs but most

[32:54] importantly the

[32:55] removal of the layers of

[32:56] bureaucracy

[32:59] that are embedded in executing

[33:00] global sourcing decisions

[33:03] reassuring also reduces the

[33:05] distances to our sources which

[33:06] makes our manufacturers in west

[33:07] Virginia

[33:09] more agile and more responsive

[33:10] to

[33:15] So we view the reassuring west

[33:16] Virginia co that we did

[33:18] in spring semester of2026 as a

[33:19] living lab

[33:22] the course provided our students

[33:23] an experiential learning

[33:25] opportunity to work on complex

[33:27] problems that supply chain

[33:27] managers are working on

[33:28] currently.

[33:31] so as we all know experiential

[33:32] learning is the most effective

[33:35] mode of pedagogy that we all

[33:36] want to strive for in higher

[33:36] education

[33:38] so I supervised a group of

[33:39] students who worked on one such

[33:40] project this past semester.

[33:43] first the students had to frame

[33:44] the objective

[33:47] and articulate the project

[33:48] deliverables then they had to

[33:49] formulate an implementation plan

[33:53] they also had to execute the

[33:54] plan

[33:56] they had to develop a

[33:56] methodology

[34:01] be able to identify data analyze

[34:02] the data and then arrive at the

[34:03] project deliverables.

[34:06] Most importantly the students

[34:06] had carefully think through

[34:09] how they could communicate these

[34:11] findings in a compelling and

[34:12] concise report to the managers

[34:13] who they were working with

[34:18] The report and subs subsequent

[34:19] presentation to the organis

[34:21] organization's managers needed

[34:22] to clearly convey the

[34:23] deliverables along with the

[34:24] sourcing strategy

[34:27] and the plan along with

[34:27] assessment of post

[34:29] implementation risks and

[34:30] rewards.

[34:33] so at every stage of the

[34:34] cappstone project whether in

[34:37] reading comprehension whether in

[34:39] writing oral communication

[34:41] project management, mathematical

[34:42] modeling students were

[34:43] challenged to develop an

[34:44] analytical mindset.

[34:44] so

[34:48] this was a real boon for our

[34:48] students

[34:51] when they interviewed with

[34:53] potential employers the

[34:54] employers saw the value that

[34:54] they brought to Westvirginia

[34:55] firms

[34:58] so this value in delivering

[35:00] theoretically theoreticallyrin

[35:01] rigorous scientific analysis

[35:03] supported by Reho Westvirginia's

[35:05] platform supports firm's

[35:07] decision making calculus to

[35:09] build reliable and competitive

[35:10] sources of supply here in

[35:10] westvirginia.

[35:15] So I believe this coursework has

[35:16] the potential of building a

[35:17] virtue cycle of helping west

[35:19] Virginia firms improve their

[35:20] strategic sourcing

[35:22] while also building a pipeline

[35:23] of talented supply chain

[35:25] managers trained in strategic

[35:27] sourcing from west Virginia

[35:29] manufacturers that in turn

[35:31] builds more business for other

[35:32] Westvirginia manufacturers.

[35:35] so we are supply chain

[35:35] management programme at West

[35:37] Virginia University is grateful

[35:38] to partner with Ed Ryan

[35:40] in his effort to generate new

[35:40] business for West Virginia

[35:41] manufacturers.

[35:44] This partnership also achieves

[35:45] West Virginia University's land

[35:46] grant mission

[35:48] to improve the economic

[35:49] prosperity of the residents of

[35:50] Westvirginia.

[35:53] in doing so we believe that West

[35:54] Virginia could become an example

[35:55] for the rest of the country

[35:57] we can demonstrate how to

[35:59] leverage the current business

[36:01] environment to encourage greater

[36:03] manufacturing capacity in west

[36:05] Virginia and thereby also build

[36:07] the US domestic manufacturing

[36:08] capacity that we have lost over

[36:09] the last half century.

[36:09] thank you

[36:17] Thank you Dr. Saanha next I'd

[36:19] like to bring up two speakers

[36:21] from Marshall University, Derek

[36:22] Scarborough from the

[36:29] Thank you Ed and thanks members

[36:30] for having me. My name is Derek

[36:31] Scarborough. I'm the director of

[36:32] Marshall's Advanced

[36:33] Manufacturing Center.

[36:35] the advanced manufacturingent at

[36:37] Marshall is a very externally

[36:39] focused applied engineering

[36:41] workforce development arm of

[36:43] marshall that works with

[36:43] business all across the state

[36:47] last year we did projects

[36:49] with358 companies and many of

[36:52] those are workforce training

[36:54] engineering custom tooling kind

[36:56] of projects but many of them are

[36:59] also supply chain issues helping

[37:02] companies find sources for

[37:04] certain services or products

[37:07] they need and also helping

[37:09] smaller companies figure out how

[37:11] to get into a larger supply

[37:13] chain so we try to work both

[37:14] sides of the equation there and

[37:15] help

[37:17] companies develop business

[37:19] opportunities especially close

[37:22] to home and what Bill said about

[37:25] many companies not knowing about

[37:28] resources in their backyard you

[37:30] know we have many examples of

[37:31] where we connected a larger

[37:33] company with a machine shop in

[37:35] the same county that had never

[37:37] talked to each other before and

[37:38] now they're supplying parts to

[37:41] each other it's great but what

[37:43] excites me about what Ed is

[37:44] doing with Reshore west Virginia

[37:49] is he's bringing his expertise

[37:51] and export import knowledge

[37:54] along with a powerful set of

[37:55] data

[37:59] that folks like us and these

[38:00] other organizations can use

[38:03] in applied work directly with

[38:07] businesses in your districts

[38:08] to help them realize

[38:10] opportunities opportunities to

[38:11] sell and source

[38:14] more products in the area

[38:17] and these classroom projects

[38:19] that are happening with the

[38:20] student teams working on Reshore

[38:23] you know they're going to be

[38:26] able to dig into specific

[38:26] examples

[38:28] specific companies

[38:31] and help go through that data

[38:33] withedd's expertise to look for

[38:35] those opportunities and then

[38:37] organizations like mine can

[38:39] perhaps come in to say all right

[38:42] we've identified this business

[38:43] that's got this capability that

[38:45] makes this widget that this

[38:47] company across the state buys

[38:52] from Asia and help them maybe

[38:53] get up to certification

[38:56] train additional workers so they

[38:58] can expand capacity what have

[39:01] you so it's a a good way to grow

[39:03] an economy helping existing

[39:04] businesses find more

[39:07] we're all in very excited to be

[39:08] part of this

[39:14] Thank youerrek next from

[39:16] Marshall University I'd like to

[39:16] ask Kit Sowards to come up

[39:23] thank you madam Chair and the

[39:24] members of the committee for

[39:24] this opportunity

[39:30] marshall and also the associate

[39:31] director of the Appalachian

[39:32] Transportation Ins

[39:42] re sh or ing actct as part of

[39:43] that initial study we determined

[39:46] that there was roughly $680

[39:49] million of products using2025 to

[39:51] date data that could reasonably

[39:53] be reassured in West Virginia

[39:54] we've been working with Reshore

[39:55] West Virginia since that effort

[39:57] to examine that for the

[39:59] entire13state Appalachian

[40:00] regional commission.

[40:02] footprint and that work

[40:03] continues we see a lot more

[40:11] our efforts so far have really

[40:12] made us understand that we just

[40:13] can't look at what products

[40:18] that's only the starting point

[40:19] what we really wanted to

[40:21] question is how do we turn that

[40:22] information into a disciplined

[40:25] it starts with

[40:41] harmonized tariff schedule data

[40:42] allows

[40:45] but also what trade def

[40:55] from there we'd use economic

[40:56] impact

[42:27] our outreach and help manu

[42:37] that's where our research can

[42:38] make reshoring a practical

[42:50] So this is one of my first

[42:51] students from University of

[42:55] Charleston I wanna give a

[42:56] special shout out he couldn't be

[42:58] here today but he gave me my

[42:59] first chance to teach in the

[43:00] un

[43:05] thank you doctorRoth for that

[43:06] opportunity with that I'd

[43:09] like to ask Kelton Bobbitts to

[43:10] come up and talk about his

[43:23] Morning everybody my name is

[43:25] Kelton Bowitz. I am an MBA

[43:27] student at the University of

[43:29] Charleston and anybody that

[43:30] knows me knows I am a very proud

[43:30] Westvirginian

[43:33] grew up infayette County no more

[43:34] than5 minutes away from the

[43:35] Newriver Gorge Bridge and

[43:36] haven't grown up in such a

[43:37] beautiful part of the state I

[43:39] got to experience so many of the

[43:40] great things our state has to

[43:42] offer. but I also got to

[43:43] experience some of its

[43:45] challenges so to better

[43:46] understand these challenges I

[43:46] went to the University of

[43:47] Charleston double major business

[43:48] man and political science

[43:52] and decided to pursue my MBA in

[43:54] my first semester in my MBA

[43:57] career I got the opportunity to

[43:59] take Ed's course and it was a

[44:00] little daunting and I didn't

[44:01] know if I was getting in over my

[44:01] head.

[44:04] but I was I spent hours and

[44:06] hours looking over data, looking

[44:07] at manufacturers in West

[44:09] Virginia really trying to

[44:11] piece it together in a way that

[44:12] could produce something valuable

[44:13] and while it was difficult and

[44:15] challenging that's exactly why I

[44:17] was able to grow from the

[44:17] experience and that's why it was

[44:19] so valuable to me because I

[44:21] learned more about tariffs,

[44:23] international trade and the

[44:24] domestic manufacturing in west

[44:26] Virginia than I did in any class

[44:27] in undergrad and the reason why

[44:28] was simple

[44:30] it's because we were focused on

[44:32] solving a real problem outside

[44:32] the classroom

[44:35] what we did in the research was

[44:37] we took an industry select a

[44:39] business within that industry

[44:41] figureed out what that business

[44:42] imported and asked a very

[44:42] practical question.

[44:45] can that be manufactured in west

[44:46] Virginia

[44:49] If yes then we ran a comparative

[44:50] analysis of the domestic

[44:53] manufacturing cost to the landed

[44:55] or imported costs and to make

[44:56] the research as actionable as we

[44:58] could we made an implementation

[44:58] plan

[45:00] very different than just writing

[45:01] a paper for a grade.

[45:03] interestingly enough through

[45:04] some of my connections in

[45:05] economic development I was able

[45:07] to send my research to some

[45:09] individuals in that field now

[45:11] did they do anything with my

[45:12] research I don't know but

[45:15] what I do know is this is that

[45:18] they now have an option that

[45:18] they didn't have before

[45:21] and I think that's what makes

[45:23] this course so valuable because

[45:24] I know I've had friends and I'm

[45:25] sure many of you have

[45:26] experienced this as well who

[45:27] have wanted to stay in west

[45:29] virginia they wanted to work in

[45:30] west Virginia raise families in

[45:31] west Virginia but they weren't

[45:33] able to not because they didn't

[45:34] want to but rather they

[45:35] struggled to find the

[45:36] opportunity here.

[45:38] and that to me is a tragedy

[45:41] and I also think that's where

[45:42] this course can add value

[45:44] because I'm just one student

[45:47] doing one piece of research but

[45:49] imagine if hundreds of students

[45:50] across this state were asking

[45:51] the same questions that I was

[45:53] asking in my research going

[45:54] through the data, looking at

[45:56] manufacturers trying to find

[45:57] that opportunity. Not every

[45:59] piece of research is going to be

[46:00] a major breakthrough and some of

[46:01] it might not even be used but

[46:03] that's ok because somebody some

[46:05] student is bound to find

[46:06] something that'll change West

[46:07] Virginia for the better

[46:11] and to me that's a win for

[46:13] everybodyudents gain real skills

[46:14] knowledge and abilities

[46:17] manufacturers gain ideas in west

[46:19] virginians ultimately gain

[46:20] opportunity.

[46:22] so if there's anything that I

[46:23] would like the committee to take

[46:25] away from my experience as a

[46:26] student that's been through this

[46:26] course it's this

[46:29] students are learning real

[46:31] knowledge and skills while

[46:32] having the potential to solve

[46:33] real problems

[46:35] I'd encourage this committee to

[46:37] support giving other students

[46:38] the opportunity that I've had to

[46:39] give back to the communities I

[46:41] care so much about because I

[46:42] believe that the best thing that

[46:43] you can get from a college

[46:45] experience is not simply a

[46:46] degree but rather the ability to

[46:47] look at a problem

[46:50] figure it out and have the

[46:51] confidence that your work can

[46:53] make a difference and for me

[46:54] that's exactly what this course

[46:55] did

[46:56] thank you so much for your time

[47:02] he got an A if you're wondering

[47:07] yeah amazing yeah so our last

[47:09] our last speaker I want I

[47:11] want you all to hear from

[47:11] who's the beneficiary of all

[47:12] this

[47:14] and that's our westvirginia

[47:17] manufacturers we had the

[47:18] opportunity to work in our

[47:18] second

[47:21] with one of our state's greatest

[47:22] man

[47:26] if you've not heard of

[47:27] rubberlight, hopefully today

[47:29] we'll shed some light on some

[47:31] of the amazing things that we're

[47:33] making in our state so with that

[47:34] Jeff Gord

[47:42] Well it's it's my pleasure to be

[47:43] here in front of you and I'm

[47:45] struggling with whether I talk

[47:47] about all the great things that

[47:48] rubberlight does.

[47:49] or all the great things I've

[47:55] Mr Ryan's the one that

[47:56] invited me here so I'm going to

[47:57] try to stick to that but rubber

[47:59] lights are relatively small

[48:01] company in terms of people and

[48:03] size about a half a million

[48:04] square feet under roof in

[48:04] Huntington

[48:06] and about165 employees

[48:09] but we're big in global

[48:11] footprint and product footprint.

[48:12] We export to about 20 different

[48:13] countries

[48:16] I'm sure that most of you

[48:19] probably use a product that has

[48:20] rubber light materials in it

[48:23] and we like to look at rubber

[48:24] lead as one of the best kept

[48:25] secrets in west virginia

[48:28] but we don't necessarily need to

[48:30] be a secret in west virginia and

[48:30] this was a great opportunity

[48:35] for us when Ed came to me and

[48:36] our president

[48:40] Brad Mayo and pitched what

[48:41] reshore west virginia was

[48:45] we thought this is brilliant

[48:46] they're taking just volumes and

[48:49] volumes of data import export

[48:51] data and translating that into

[48:53] materials that we could sell

[48:57] in our state materials that

[48:58] we're exporting to Malaysia

[48:59] China

[49:03] Australia and indeed our

[49:04] largest customer is in Malaysia.

[49:07] and and we thought well this is

[49:09] brilliant. it seems to make a

[49:10] lot of sense so he's mining the

[49:13] data the materials people are

[49:14] bringing into west Virginia and

[49:15] just saying look rubber light

[49:16] makes

[49:20] and so we had the good fortune

[49:22] of being part of a capstone

[49:22] project with

[49:25] students from Drctor Saana's

[49:26] class

[49:29] and I can't tell you how

[49:30] impressed I was with

[49:35] did a study without our help

[49:37] without any insight from us,

[49:39] using the reshore West Virginia

[49:42] methods our methodologies I

[49:43] should say and I'm sure a little

[49:45] bit of Mr. Ryan's talent and

[49:46] insight and

[49:49] they put together an amazing

[49:50] study

[49:54] that was just found was very

[49:57] accurate and found an absolute

[49:59] custom potential customer that

[50:01] we've actually had in our sites

[50:03] for many years but found it

[50:05] challenging to compete with the

[50:06] foams that are made

[50:12] supply chain

[50:15] but I'll tell you rubber

[50:17] light is a company that does not

[50:19] chase nickels and dimes at the

[50:22] expense of dollars. so we are

[50:25] almost solely US based in terms

[50:27] of our raw materials buying our

[50:29] building blocks for the

[50:30] polymers that we make all

[50:31] domestically.

[50:34] we use a few specialty catalysts

[50:36] and things that come from places

[50:36] because no one else makes them

[50:40] but basically all of our carbon

[50:41] building blocks come from the

[50:43] United States and even one

[50:45] product line it's all west

[50:48] virginia. The one side of the

[50:49] reaction is made in New

[50:50] Martinsville the other side's

[50:51] maden South Charleston and

[50:53] they're we're putting them all

[50:55] together to make a line of

[50:57] highly specialized technical irs

[50:59] that are used in processes

[51:01] that is it's quite an

[51:02] innovative piece of material.

[51:05] so anyway, back to the the

[51:07] cappstone project. The students

[51:11] we had the opportunity to host

[51:13] them at at uhrubberli they came

[51:14] down we gave them tours

[51:16] they knew what they were looking

[51:17] at as they were looking through

[51:19] there was it was they were

[51:20] they did their homework

[51:23] and and they're their study and

[51:25] the the quality of of the output

[51:27] of that capstone project I was I

[51:28] was impressed

[51:30] and honestly I'm kind of a hard

[51:33] guy to impress so I wasn't

[51:33] expecting too much and so

[51:37] I have no dog in this fight but

[51:39] I do know that supply chain

[51:41] security is our bread and

[51:42] butter. That's Rubberli's bread

[51:43] and butter and the more young

[51:45] people know or the people coming

[51:47] into the workforce understand

[51:51] the criticality of supply chain

[51:52] the better off all of our

[51:53] companies are going to be

[51:55] you know sustainability is a

[51:56] word that's kicked around a lot

[51:59] in my industry in the

[52:01] chemicals and polymer industry,

[52:03] but the primary sustainability

[52:05] is security of supply and that's

[52:07] where we live that is our bread

[52:08] and butter. So through C covid

[52:09] we didn't lose a beat

[52:13] some of our lo much larger peers

[52:14] in the industry they did why?

[52:16] sourcing of materials

[52:20] to save those nickels and dimes

[52:22] and and that's something that

[52:23] that rubber light does not do so

[52:25] I encourage you to learn a

[52:26] little bit about rubber light

[52:27] and what we do. I thank you for

[52:29] those that already do advocate

[52:32] for us, uh, uh, such as

[52:33] Billissett here in the west

[52:35] Virginia Manufacturers

[52:36] association for ed for Marshall

[52:39] University we get quite a few

[52:40] of our technical resources out

[52:43] of Marshall we use an

[52:45] informal internship program.

[52:47] I've hired 3 engineers,2

[52:48] chemists

[52:51] multitude of technicians

[52:51] staff out of Marshall

[52:53] University. it's a nice

[52:54] resource to have

[52:57] thank you again. good luck.

[53:03] thank you all

[53:05] for taking the time to to come

[53:06] in today

[53:11] so as as as you heard today

[53:12] this is our mission

[53:15] rubber light's a great

[53:21] about1,000 manufacturers

[53:25] we want to introduce

[53:33] about4.9

[53:39] we're gonna do that through the

[53:40] reshor

[53:45] so this coming semester at WU

[53:46] I've got

[53:49] reshoring opportunities in west

[53:51] Virginia I want thank

[53:53] doctorctor Saldanaha for his

[53:55] partnership and mentoring me to

[53:58] become an adjunct instructor

[54:00] I never dreamed of being a a

[54:03] college professor but I think

[54:05] the necessity of the opportunity

[54:06] demands it so

[54:09] I'm inspired by students like

[54:11] Kelton who can get up here and

[54:13] and tell you his story and

[54:14] show you

[54:21] so we're gonna be running the

[54:23] reshoring opportunities in west

[54:25] Virginia of course at Wvu but

[54:26] then we look to expand that

[54:27] so I would ask

[54:33] man to assist us in bringing

[54:35] that course to universities both

[54:38] private and public across the

[54:38] great state of westvirginia

[54:41] we see an opportunity for

[54:42] hundre

[54:49] and pour in at that same level

[54:50] that Kelton has

[54:57] One product one import

[54:57] opportunity

[55:01] So with that I'd like to

[55:07] Any questions

[55:15] thank you

[55:17] I really appreciate this

[55:18] presentation

[55:21] have you guys looked at access

[55:23] to capital once you've done the

[55:24] research on saying here's a

[55:26] here's a need and the demand

[55:28] level in West Virginia it can be

[55:28] met

[55:31] now you need an entrepreneur

[55:32] who's going to be able to go out

[55:33] and access capital is where is

[55:34] that next step addressed yet?

[56:06] So when you're when you're

[56:07] talking to banks is it across

[56:09] the state is it just a couple of

[56:10] them you don't have to tell us

[56:11] which one they are and the

[56:12] reason I ask is because

[56:15] in my private life there's a

[56:17] lot of banking relationships we

[56:18] have and when things those needs

[56:19] come up they will sometimes

[56:21] reach out and say hey you might

[56:22] want to look into this type

[56:22] thing

[56:26] I would encourage that part of

[56:27] it because I was there's there's

[56:29] a million ideas and you guys are

[56:30] really going through and and

[56:31] getting the plan to implement an

[56:32] idea

[56:34] in one of the biggest challenges

[56:35] I think we face once we get to

[56:36] that spot in west Virginia is

[56:37] having

[56:40] access to capital to get it done

[56:40] here

[56:41] so it's

[56:45] if if you're finding barriers as

[56:47] you go along along that path

[56:48] it'd be I'd be interested in

[56:48] hearing what those barriers are

[56:59] right thank you gentlemen very

[57:00] much.

[57:03] Is there any other business to

[57:04] come before the committee

[57:08] OK they bring no further

[57:09] business before the committee. I

[57:10] recognize the co-chair. madamir,

[57:11] I move that the meeting be

[57:13] adjourned. All those in favor

[57:14] say aye.

[57:16] those opposed no in the opinion

[57:17] of the chair the ayes have it

[57:18] the meeting is adjourned. Thank

[57:19] you everyone.

Joint Standing Committee on Education

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