Collaboration, investments highlight Talent EVV’s first annual report
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Talent EVV, the Evansville region’s strategic transformation plan, released its first annual report in January, highlighting economic growth and quality of life progress. The Evansville Regional Business Committee helped launch the project in 2018 when it was called Talent 2025.
The Evansville Regional Economic Partnership, or E-REP, now spearheads the initiative.
Tyler Stock, executive director of Talent EVV, said the 2023 report is meant to celebrate the Evansville region.
“It’s a way for us to publicly acknowledge that we’re moving the needle, but it’s also a way for us to hold ourselves accountable,” he said.
The initiative started with data collection and then moved into an action phase in 2020, which included activities, strategies and milestones. The report focuses on four areas: population growth, thriving workforce, upward mobility and live well. These areas align with five regional goals: a growing young adult population, future-facing high-wage jobs, globally relevant talent, increased economic prosperity and improved health outcomes.
“We believe these are the most significant areas that can drive true regional transformation for our community. It really is taking a very holistic look at what current and future residents need to thrive and for our economy to thrive in the Evansville region,” said Stock. “The five goals are the specific indicators that we’re tracking within those areas.”
The first report
Though Talent EVV’s goals were initially set for 2025, Stock said COVID impacted the ability to achieve objectives in that time frame.
“We will see where we measure up in 2025 and determine if we need to set new goals where we are meeting or exceeding expectations,” he said. “At the end of the day, the goals are north stars for the region, and the value of measuring them consistently allows us to determine when, how and why they might need to be adjusted along the way.”
Each focus area has an organizational lead: E-REP, population growth; Junior Achievement of Southwestern Indiana, thriving workforce; United Way of Southwestern Indiana, upward mobility; Welborn Baptist Foundation, live well. Stock said the collaboration of these groups is the most significant highlight of the report. Marcia Forston, executive director of Junior Achievement of Southwestern Indiana, agreed.
“I like to say, [this region is] the right size for impact,” she said. “If you want to do something to make a difference in this world, just hold up your hand, and somebody’s going to snatch you right up. You can get involved … so how do we lean into that and even become more intentional with this gift that we all inherited of collaboration and commitment and connection?”
Stock also emphasized the $76 million invested in the focus areas, including more than $38 million in thriving workforce and nearly $31 million in population growth.
“[These investments show] that there’s focus and strategic intentionality around these areas and that the Evansville region at large has created some goals that many different stakeholder groups and investors agree are the right goals to be advancing,” he said.
Population growth
Talent EVV’s population growth goal is to increase the population by 10,000 residents, with half of those citizens in the early stages of their careers. Stock said targeting that specific demographic is deliberate.
“We’ve chosen a growing young adult population because we recognize the importance and the intentionality behind folks that are early stage career, that are going to be active in our workforce, are going to help with jobs and wage growth,” he said.
Data showed the young adult population increased by 0.2% and the minority population rose by 1.5% since 2018. The region also has the state’s No. 1 remote work program, with an average income of more than $110,000 and over $1 million in economic impact.
“[The program] allows us to show the state and other investors that Evansville really is a great place to live. But it also shows that our marketing team here at E-REP has created a strong value proposition. And the message that they’ve created is resonating with folks that maybe don’t even have a tie to this community originally,” said Stock.
Abby Elpers, marketing director at E-REP, said the population growth strategy transcends beyond digital marketing.
“It’s about building meaningful connections with newcomers and returnees, helping them find their place. Together, we connect talent to our region and welcome them to contribute to our shared success,” she said in the report.
Thriving workforce
Talent EVV’s thriving workforce goal is two-fold: a globally competitive, relevant and highly trained workforce and 5,000 high-paying new jobs that build on the manufacturing industry and health and life sciences sector.
The report showed the annual average wage rose by more than $9,000, employment growth improved by 1.7% and adult bachelor’s degrees or higher increased by 2.8% since 2018.
Stock believes a $30 million Promise Neighborhood grant from the Department of Education secured by the University of Evansville in 2023 will impact some of the most challenged census tracts and schools with historically low performance. He also noted Signature School’s ranking as the No. 1 charter school in the country.
“We’re attracting and retaining talent from not just this community but potentially across the United States,” said Stock.
Forston said the work to increase educational attainment requires a shared regional education strategy from cradle through career.
“We have, in this five-county region, seven higher education institutions. That they’re all at the table and collaborating on how to make all of their work stronger is really great,” she said. “Our industry partners know best the skills and competencies needed today and in the future for individual successes.”
Live well
Talent EVV’s live well goal is to improve the quality and quantity of residents’ lives. Areas of focus include decreasing premature deaths and low birth rates, decreasing tobacco use and increasing diet and exercise.
Data showed that the health index stayed at -0.3% since 2018. However, nearly 60 employers and over 120 individuals took mental health first aid classes, which teach people how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. In addition, more than 200 families participated in the Pre to 3 program, where community health workers visit clients once a week from pregnancy until the child reaches age 3.
Andrea Hays, program and community engagement officer at Welborn Baptist Foundation, said another project focused on children’s health is in the works: a Ronald McDonald Care Mobile that delivers prenatal services.
“The Care Mobile build-out should be completed later this year, and Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Ohio Valley will officially launch services in 2025,” said Hays.
METS Micro, an on-demand public rideshare service launched in November, helps people get around Evansville’s east side and an area in Warrick County that includes Deaconess Gateway Hospital and other medical facilities. Riders pay $2 per ride.
“We have some large provider offices and an entire hospital just across county lines … Evansville public transportation doesn’t cross county lines,” Hays said. “[With METS Micro], we are seeing consistent ridership. It’s consistently increasing as well. There are even talks already about how can we expand that geographic boundary a little bit.”
Upward mobility
Talent EVV’s upward mobility goal is to reduce the percentage of households living in poverty by 2,100. The report showed the poverty rate dropped by 2.3%, and the median household income increased by $4,000 since 2018. More than 400 mixed-use housing units were also added within the Promise Zone.
Amy Mangold, executive director of the United Way of Southwestern Indiana, said poverty is complex.
“It’s about mental health, intergenerational poverty and making sure that not only people can get living wage jobs, but they can maintain those living wage jobs. That we identify and acknowledge the barriers that some populations have to maintaining higher wage jobs, be it childcare issues, transportation or stable housing, those types of things,” she said.
Mangold said it’s challenging to get an accurate picture of the region’s poverty with some of the anomalies over the past few years—such as the pandemic stimulus payments—and the fact that poverty is measured on a five-year rolling average. She also recognized the work goes beyond simply getting people out of poverty.
“It’s how do we get our residents in the region in a space where they are upwardly mobile, they are thriving economically,” said Mangold. “So we’re also looking at the development of other leading indicators that will show us that people are reaching those levels of self-sufficiency and also the level of thriving.”
Mangold echoed the significance of the collaboration element of the Talent EVV initiative.
“There is a rich tapestry of partners that are doing amazing things within this arena, and it’s an exciting time as we see people moving to make more impact and to do some deep interventions,” she said. “It takes all of us working together as opposed to all of us working in silos because then we can bring that holistic service to help create a larger scale change.”