Hoyer Attends "Southern MD Regional Update: Innovation, Diversification, Education and Anchors" Forum
PRINCE FREDERICK, MD – Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) attended a forum with military officials, educators, business leaders, and other stakeholders on potential economic growth in Southern Maryland. The program, “Southern Maryland Regional Update: Innovation, Diversification, Education, and Anchors. It’s All About Regional Collaboration,” was hosted by the Patuxent Partnership, Southern Maryland Navy Alliance, and the Energetics Technology Center.
“I was pleased to join members of our community today to discuss the progress we are making in Southern Maryland to diversify our economy, promote innovation, and secure the high-skill, high-wage jobs we need for a strong future,” stated Congressman Hoyer. “Southern Maryland continues to be the fastest growing region in our a state and has the highest job growth of any Maryland region. We’ve built a strong foundation for the next phase of Southern Maryland’s economic growth, having made sure that our bases would grow as a result of BRAC in the 1990’s. Pax River, Indian Head, and Webster field have become anchors for regional growth and development, but there is more work we must do to ensure that they support the jobs that will help more of our workers make it in America and right here in Maryland.”
“With the end of military operations in Iraq and the winding-down in Afghanistan, and with budget cuts affecting the Pentagon, we must plan for a future in which federal funding for defense programs is less dependable,” continued Congressman Hoyer. “That means diversification, which will require a serious effort by all three counties, working together to promote the growth of businesses that not only provide services, but also create products with wider applicability and that can perform more complicated integration of systems. While we must rededicate ourselves to making our bases even stronger and more competitive, we also need to augment their missions by building up our capability outside the fences. I thank community leaders for coming together today and I look forward to continuing to work together to prepare Southern Maryland for the economy of 2020 and beyond.”
“As an organization whose mission is to advance education through STEM based initiatives, and to advance science and technology transfer, we are pleased to be a part of the broader Southern Maryland regional approach to diversify and strengthen our economy and expand our education opportunities,” said Bonnie Green, Executive Director of the Patuxent Partnership.
“Today’s forum at the CSM’s Prince Frederick campus was another very important and positive milestone in our Southern Maryland Region’s efforts to come together and strengthen our economy through innovation, diversification and education, and continuing to support our federal institutional ‘anchors’ like the Navy at Indian Head and Pax River,” said Glen Ives, President of The Southern Maryland Navy Alliance. “It’s exciting and encouraging to see our national, state and local elected leaders, public and private sector leaders working together for the long term benefit of our communities in the fastest growing region in our state.”
“Events such as this are critical to bringing the Southern Maryland area together as a region,” said Robert Kavetsky, President & Executive Director of Energetics Technology Center. “We have a high concentration of scientific and engineering talent in Southern Maryland, which is a key element to creating a technology-based economy for the region.”
Congressman Hoyer was also joined by Michael Busch, Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates; Secretary Dominick Murray, Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development; Dr. Brit Kirwan, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland; VADM David Dunaway, Commander, NAVAIR; Karen Burrows, Technical Director, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head; Dr. Darryl Pines, Dean of Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland; and Dr. Brad Gottfried, President of the College of Southern Maryland.