Elizabeth Narehood, Managing Director of the Future Focus Foundation
The Technology Council’s educational foundation, The Future Focus Foundation, is focused on preparing and encouraging Region 2000 students in K-12 and beyond to seek careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields and to provide a pipeline for a technically and scientifically proficient workforce in Virginia’s Region 2000.
Our Foundation’s managing director, Elizabeth Narehood, was recently featured in the News & Advances’s local business news website ‘Work It Lynchburg‘. Check out the interview below:
“Tell us the basics: Who are you, what’s your company’s name, and how long have you been at this company?
I am Elizabeth Narehood, Managing Director of the Future Focus Foundation, a position I began in 2011.
Describe your business — what do you do?
The mission of the Future Focus Foundation is to prepare and encourage Region 2000 students in K-12 and beyond to seek careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields and to provide a pipeline for a technically and scientifically proficient workforce in Virginia’s Region 2000. We accomplish this through providing hands-on learning such as our regional robotics programs, by supporting professional development and networking for STEM educators, and through strengthening the essential connection between industry and education.
How did you get into this business?
My background is related to STEM education. I have a bachelor degree in Animal Science and a Master Degree in Education focused on Career and Technical Education. Before this position, I had the privilege of serving as the 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent for Campbell County. Through my experience as a 4-H Agent, I developed a passion for youth education. When an opportunity came along for me to combine a passion for youth education with a life-long love of science, this position was something I could not pass up!
What’s the market like for your business? Local and national/international.
Within the last five years, STEM education has gained the visibility and attention that it has always deserved. As our society continues down the fast track of technological advancement, having a scientifically minded, inquiry based workforce with a strong technological skill set will be vital to economic growth both locally, nationally, and internationally. The Region 2000 Technology Council embraced this need by creating the Future Focus Foundation in 2009, a 501 (c)(3) public charity focused on building the STEM workforce pipeline in the region…”
(Read the whole interview at WorkItLynchburg.com)
