01 / Community
Community Support + Event Management
We help communities and organizations plan events, visitor experiences, outreach efforts and local initiatives that bring people together and strengthen the places they call home.
An Activate CTE Program
Community + Economic Development
Strong communities need more than good ideas.
Activate PLACE is a community and economic development program of Activate CTE. We help communities, nonprofits, businesses, educators, workforce organizations and public partners turn ideas into action.
PLACE extends Activate CTE's work beyond the classroom by strengthening the communities, partnerships and local systems that connect people to opportunity.
Partnerships
Leadership
Action
Community
Engagement
What Activate PLACE Does
Community work rarely fits into one lane.
Activate CTE has always worked where education, workforce and opportunity meet. PLACE expands that work into the communities and organizations surrounding those systems.
We work across community engagement, economic development, workforce, industry and partnerships because local challenges rarely exist separately.
02 / Connection
Partnerships + Community Connections
We help organizations build relationships, communicate their impact and connect with the people, partners, resources and opportunities that can move good work forward.
03 / Workforce
Workforce + Industry Partnerships
We connect employers, education, workforce systems and community partners to strengthen career pathways, talent pipelines, work-based learning and meaningful industry engagement.
PLACE in Action
The work happens in community.
Sometimes the work is an event. Sometimes it is a conversation with a business owner, an introduction between partners, a workforce project, a funding connection, an advocacy conversation or simply helping the right people find each other. PLACE starts with what the community actually needs.
Marketing + Storytelling
Good work should not be hard to explain.
Communities, nonprofits, chambers, workforce programs and local organizations are often doing meaningful work while also trying to explain that work to businesses, residents, funders, visitors and partners.
Activate PLACE helps turn complicated projects into clear stories, useful marketing and communication that helps people understand, participate and take action.
Website Strategy + Development
Branding + Messaging
Event + Tourism Marketing
Community Outreach
Sponsorship + Fundraising Materials
Social Media + Digital Campaigns
Impact Storytelling
Business + Community Engagement
Keynotes + Workshops + Leadership Conversations
Bring the right conversation into the room.
Jason Blackwell
Nationally Recognized Educator · National Speaker · Workforce Leader · Motivational Speaker
Jason speaks at the intersection of Career and Technical Education, skilled trades, workforce development, industry partnerships, leadership and community opportunity.
His keynotes, workshops and leadership conversations are grounded in real classrooms, real workforce challenges and practical experience. The goal is not simply to inspire a room. It is to start conversations people can carry back into their schools, organizations, businesses and communities.
Education + CTE Conferences · Workforce Development · Business +
Industry Associations · Nonprofit Leadership · Chambers of Commerce ·
Economic Development · Manufacturing + Skilled Trades · Community
Colleges · Association + Leadership Events
View Jason Blackwell's Experience on LinkedIn →
Part of the Activate CTE Mission
Education does not exist apart from community.
Activate CTE works to strengthen educators, students, workforce pathways and the communities around them. Activate PLACE brings that same practical, partnership-first approach to community and economic development.
Start With the Need
You do not need to have the whole solution figured out.
Tell us what your community, organization or partners are experiencing. Tell us what is getting in the way or what you are trying to build. Not every conversation needs to begin with a contract or a finished scope of work. Sometimes the first useful step is simply getting the right people talking.