Some time last night this blog hosted visitor number 32,000.

Welcome to all. Seattle's Best coffee this morning.

We completed the proposal, Forecast of Economic, Population, and Employment Consequences of the Closing of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base. From our abstract:

The Penn State Workforce Development Initiative proposes to forecast the economic, population, and employment consequences of the closing of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. First, a description of the status of the County economy, population, and employment will be prepared to provide context for understanding the impact of the Base closing. Second, control forecasts of the economy, population, and employment for Montgomery County will be prepared through 2015. These forecasts will describe the likely economic/demographic/employment path of Montgomery County if the basic structural features of the County remained static and natural economic and demographic growth and change ensued through 2015. Third, assessments of the economic, population, and employment impacts in Montgomery County of the closing of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base will be made by comparing differences between control forecasts and alternative forecasts of the Montgomery County economy. The alternative forecasts will detail the path of the County, as if the Base were closed. The differences between the control and alternative forecasts are the forecasted impact of the Base closing. Knowledge/skill/ability characteristics of workers that are likely to be displaced by the Base closing will be tabulated. Specific business contacts will be identified in industries that project demand for workers in occupations displaced by the Base. To produce this information, the Workforce Development Initiative will analyze the economy and demographics of Montgomery County employing leading economic development and impact analysis models and tools.

Rose Baker and I worked on proposals last week, and we will continue during the upcoming week.

Submitted last week:

• "Measuring the Impact of the Residential Construction Academy Series Learning Materials On Learner Performance and Trade Program Outcomes" to the Builders Association of Metropolitan Pittsburgh.
• "Exploration and Analysis of Mid-Level Management Training"
• "National Institute for Utility Management: Feasibility Evaluation and Business Plan Development Proposal"
  

In development today is "Forecast of Economic and Employment Consequences of the Closing of the Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base" to the Montgomery County Workforce Investment Board.

These proposals are part of the effort of Penn State's Workforce Development Initiative. Starting on 1 November, Rose became the Program Manager of the new Workforce Assessment Center. I am the Director of the Institute for Research in Training and Development. The Center and the Institute are the primary collaborators in the Workforce Development Initiative, a joint effort of Penn State Outreach and Penn State's College of Education.

A tip one way or the other. The sun is strong, even in Winter. The wind blows in from the sea. Just a tip one way or the other. Like a supersaturated solution, the mixture is ready to crystallize and settle out for the long run. Ready to make it real. Just waiting for a word. That's all it would take. Just a "yes," and the world would be realigned. A brief silence. A pause to look at the sky. The moment is gone. Praise be for roads not taken.

The Road Not Taken
--Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

The sun is up over Mount Nittany. I have French Roast in the coffee urn. All is well.