Smith County Awarded ThreeStar Grant
Oct 4 2019
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe announced today the 59 counties that will receive ThreeStar grants.
In total, TNECD is awarding $2.4 million in funding to Tennessee communities through this round of the ThreeStar grant program.
The grants will be used for a variety of local community development initiatives, including education, workforce development, health, entrepreneurship and economic development programs, among others that are prioritized by the communities.
“These 59 ThreeStar grants will help counties all across Tennessee invest in vital community development initiatives,” Lee said. “I’m eager to see these programs strengthen the quality of life, access to workforce training programs, and economic opportunities for our residents in rural Tennessee.”
“The ThreeStar grant program has a proven track record of success, and I’m pleased to announce this year’s grant recipients,” Rolfe said. “TNECD is proud to assist communities that are committed to improving their workforce readiness and quality of life with these types of innovative local programs.”
ThreeStar promotes economic and community prosperity through collaboration to positively impact every Tennessean. For the third time in the past four years, all 95 Tennessee counties gained ThreeStar certification.
To be eligible for ThreeStar grants, each county must meet all ThreeStar certification requirements, develop an asset-based strategic plan and design a program to implement a goal from its strategic plan. The 59 counties were selected out of 78 applications.
“TNECD is committed to helping communities in areas that they prioritize on a local level,” Jody Sliger, TNECD’s Community Development Director, said. “We are proud to partner with these 59 communities and support a wide range of community development programs all across our state.”
Smith County has received 37 straight 3Star awards and received a grant for $50,000.