The Roanoke Region is a hotbed of job opportunities, particularly in health care, education and technology.
By Stuart Mease
As workers from large metropolitan areas across the country deal with uncertain economic times, including job losses and high costs of living, they’ll discover that smaller cities such as Roanoke provide unique lifestyle and employment opportunities.
Chris Chmura, president and chief economist for Chmura Economics & Analytics in Richmond, has an optimistic outlook on the Roanoke region’s economy.
“Even with the recession, the health care industry in Roanoke is growing at a rapid pace and is expected to continue adding jobs into 2009,” he says. “Job growth is also expected at education institutions in 2009.”
Health & Education Explosion
The organization primarily responsible for the growth in the health care sector is the Carilion Clinic, which was announced in 2006 and is modeled on such high-profile examples as the Mayo Clinic and the Cleveland Clinic. In partnership with Virginia Tech, Carilion is also creating the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. Coupling the resources of these two economic drivers is expected to produce a unique regional growth opportunity, creating many jobs.
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