RENEWABLE Energy Marketplace—An Alliance for Talent Development Names Board Members

Contact: Teresa Kittridge

Phone: 952-454-7211

Email: teresa@mnrem.org

[Marshall, MN] - The Minnesota Renewable Energy Marketplace—An Alliance for Talent Development (MNREM)—

announces the naming of its Leadership Board and election of Executive Committee Chair. MNREM staff and co-leads (SW MN Workforce Council and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development) are pleased to welcome the new board members representing the region. The Executive Committee members include:

Mark Willers, CEO, Minwind Energy, Luverne—Chair

Tom Daggett, President, Hutchinson Manufacturing, Hutchinson—Vice-Chair

Dave Sunderman, Member Services Manager, BENCO Electric; General Manager, CTV; School Board member, Mankato—Secretary-Treasurer

Randy Hagen, President, Solar Skies, Starbuck

Connie Ireland, Regional Administrator, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Mankato

Juanita Lauritsen, Executive Director, Southwest Minnesota Workforce Council, Marshall

Bob Neal, former Executive of Cargill, Alexandria

Lowell Rasmussen, Vice Chancellor, University of Minnesota, Morris

Sherry Ristau, President, Southwest Initiative Foundation, Hutchinson

Richard Shrubb, President, Minnesota West Community & Technical College, Worthington

Other members of the Leadership Board include:

Warrenn Anderson, Attorney, Morris

Marty Davis, President/CEO, Davisco Industries, LeSueur

Diane Halvorson, Director, South Central Workforce Council, Mankato

Tom Hoff, Career and Technical Project Coordinator, Southwest/West Central Service Cooperative, Marshall

Bob Hoffman, Vice President, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Dan Kieffer, Business Representative, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Litchfield

Jeremy Kovash, Executive Director, Lakes Country Service Coop, Fergus Falls

Jerry Larson, Farmer & Chair of Ottertail Ag Enterprises, Elbow Lake

Larry Larson, Founding Partner, High Country Energy, Northfield

Jan Lundebrek, President, First Security Bank, CVEC Board Member, Benson

Tim Penny, President, Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, Owatonna

Nancy Straw, President, West Central Initiative, Fergus Falls

Kent Thiesse, Vice President, MinnStar Bank; School Board Chair, Lake Crystal

Robert Thurston, President, Thurston Genetics, Olivia

Dennis Timmerman, Senior Project Development Director, Agricultural Utilization Research Institute (AURI), Marshall

Bob Weerts, Owner and Operator, Weerts Construction, Winnebago

Dan Wenner, Director, Rural MN CEP, Detroit Lakes

The MNREM region includes 36 counties in south central, southwest, and west central Minnesota. MNREM is an industryled consortium of economic development, workforce development, education and workforce leaders. It provides the framework and commitment to transform the 36-county region from a primarily agriculture-dependent economy to a knowledge and innovation-based economy that capitalizes on the region’s strength in agriculture and renewable energy.

Critical emerging industries related to renewable energy and bioscience are revitalizing the inherent know-how and spirit of entrepreneurship in the region, and will form the foundation for the regional transformation. Industry sectors targeted for the focus of the MNREM initiative include renewable energy, value-added agriculture, bioscience, and the supporting industries.

MNREM’s mission is to develop regional talent and businesses, boost innovation and support the cultivation of new technologies to achieve a competitive advantage in the global economy.

The U.S. Department of Labor awarded a $5 million grant to support this initiative to help the region achieve long-term, sustainable economic vitality and compete in a global economy through the retention, creation, and attraction of an educated and skilled workforce.

For more information on the Minnesota Renewable Energy Marketplace—An Alliance for Talent Development initiative, please contact Teresa Kittridge, Executive Director, at 952-454-7211 or Teresa@mnrem.