Ten at the Top releases midyear report

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Ten at the Top’s midyear report reflects an increase in remote engagement during the spring and summer’s COVID-19 pandemic following 27 virtual meetings and 51 regional engagements including weekly TATT Chat sessions and county-specific listening tours.

Dean Hybl, executive director of Ten at the Top, notes the new year brought with it a focus on transportation access and mobility, senior needs, entrepreneurial services for “disconnected” communities, and talent attraction — especially teachers.

“As we all now clearly know, the best laid plans are no match for a global pandemic,” Hybl said in a news release about the report.

Starting in March, Ten at the Top shifted midstream to refocus efforts on becoming a hub for information for the Upstate business community. On March 16, Ten at the Top linked more than 100 health, utility, education, business, government and other resource providers through the Upstate COVID-19 Community Link Repository, followed by a virtual Entrepreneur Ecosystem workshop series and TATT Chat webinars to foster dialogue on COVID-19 recovery efforts among community leaders.

Ten at the Top also partnered with Clemson University and United Way to develop an interactive regional food access map for Upstate citizens struggling with food insecurity, according to the release.

“Though much of the focus of TATT staff during the second quarter of 2020 was on outreach, there was also continued work done to advance the focus areas identified at the beginning of the year,” Hybl said in the release.

The Upstate Mobility Alliance, launched in January, has created four work groups to debate improvements in public transportation, growing mobility investments, active and livable communities and technology and innovation, according to the release. Ten at the Top’s teacher workforce attraction campaign, Teach at the Top, is also at work on developing a teacher gateway platform for prospective teachers looking for work in the Upstate.

In light of community safety concerns following some high-profile deaths of Black people at the hands of police officers and the national protests that followed, Anderson Mayor Terence Roberts, chairman of Ten at the Top, will also convene a discovery committee to investigate opportunities to enhance safety and unity for all Upstate citizens, the release said.

“By continuing to think creatively and work collaboratively, the Upstate will address the challenges ahead and ultimately emerge from this crisis with greater resolve and community strength to tackle future tests and ensure this region remains a special place to live, learn, do business and raise a family for generations to come,” Hybl said in the release.

The networking organization is currently assessing remote alternatives to its annual Pique Young Professionals Summit for this year, according to the release, and has rescheduled its bi-annual Upstate Regional Summit for May 5, 2021.