About NAAMREI
NAAMREI is a U.S Department of Labor WIRED project devoted to developing a skilled and talented workforce and the increasing business momentum of the Rio South Texas Region. Ultimately, it will provide a transformational opportunity for the region to lead the nation and the world in rapid response manufacturing.
Historically, the Rio South Texas Region has been identified as a rural, agriculturalbased economy characterized by sporadic growth. In the past 10 years, the region, comprised of seven counties, has overcome a variety of challenges from high unemployment rates, low educational attainment and cultural bias to become one of the fastest growing economic areas in the Unites States. The McAllen-Mission-Pharr MSA, Brownsville-Harlingen MSA and Laredo MSA are among the fastest growing metropolitan statistical areas in the United States. In 2006, the region registered employment growth rates greater than the state average with developing counties Webb, Hidalgo and Cameron making a mark on the national scene. A significant opportunity now exists to leverage the current economic vitality to profoundly and positively impact the Region’s quality of life and long-term economic competitiveness.
Workforce development strategies are vital to achieving significant and sustained economic transformation. Regional talent development partnerships represent the foundation on which can be built a strong, sustainable, transformational strategy guiding the area toward economic prosperity in today’s global economy. The region currently boasts a strong workforce partnership network that is focused on addressing the challenges of developing the talent needed to compete in the global economy. These groups believe that the key to regional transformation is a coherent strategic plan integrating workforce, innovation and economic development in the region that will address the existing and projected need for skilled and trained workers, particularly in the advanced manufacturing sector.
Using an industry cluster analysis performed by Workforce Solutions, advanced manufacturing was identified as the sector offering the best fit for a plan to strategically position the region on a sustainable path to economic growth and prosperity. Leaders in education at all levels, government, economic development groups and industry have come together to focus on the concept of rapid response manufacturing (RRM) as a key platform to help transform the region into a global leader in advanced manufacturing. To achieve this objective, the Region must come together in a broad-based effort to develop, coordinate, and strengthen ongoing initiatives committed to talent development. Providing the pipeline of skilled talent necessary to support and retain existing advanced manufacturing employers while developing the talent pool needed to attract new advanced manufacturing companies to Rio South Texas is vital to the area’s economic future.
The WIRED investment in the Region is now the driving force in aligning the work of existing Alliances under the North American Advanced Manufacturing Research and Education Initiative (NAAMREI).
NAAMREI
The NAAMREI Consortium is comprised of forty-seven public and private partners from a variety of industries and sectors. The Consortium evolved as a result of the work of three alliances in the region:
- North American Technology and Innovation Alliance;
- Rio South Texas Manufacturing College Alliance; and
- Region One Education Service Center (ESC) Texas Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (T-STEM) Alliance
To promote integration, the work of each Alliance corresponds to a “Strategic Goal” in the overall WIRED Project. From this perspective, the initiative will focus the investment made from WIRED funds on talent development activities, while leveraging funds from other sources to fulfill infrastructure activities. Part of the WIRED investment will be used to support a NAAMREI office that will provide guidance and technical support to the NAAMREI Consortium in compliance with all requirements on the use of WIRED investment. The WIRED investment will be the catalyst to integrate the alliances and launch the NAAMREI Consortium to transform the Rio South Texas region.