{"id":1644,"date":"2026-03-03T13:50:05","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T13:50:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/?p=1644"},"modified":"2026-03-03T20:31:54","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T20:31:54","slug":"building-opportunity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/2026\/03\/03\/building-opportunity\/","title":{"rendered":"Building Opportunity"},"content":{"rendered":"
For Brandon Dennison, economic development isn\u2019t an abstract concept or policy discussion, it\u2019s personal.<\/p>\n

Born and raised in Cabell County, West Virginia, Brandon grew up understanding both the promise and challenges of Appalachia. Marshall University was always part of that story. His parents taught at Marshall and the institution stood as a gateway of opportunity for the region he calls home.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Today, as Marshall\u2019s vice president of economic and workforce development<\/a>, Brandon is helping expand that gateway.<\/p>\n

Long before joining Marshall University, Brandon was working to answer a question that had followed him through his life: why did economic hardship persist in communities filled with capable, hardworking people?<\/p>\n

The answer began to take shape during a college service trip in southern West Virginia. While repairing a home for an elderly resident, two young men approached his volunteer group wearing tool belts and asked if paid work was available.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey weren\u2019t looking for charity,\u201d he said. \u201cThey were looking for opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThey weren\u2019t looking for charity. They were looking for opportunity.”<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t- Brandon Dennison<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

That brief interaction helped inspire the creation of Coalfield Development<\/a>, the social enterprise Brandon founded to help create jobs while training workers at the same time. His model at Coalfield Development combined 33 work hours with six hours of higher education and three hours of personal development each week. This proved workforce training and economic revitalization could happen together, a philosophy that would later follow him to Marshall.<\/p>\n

Brandon credits Marshall President Brad D. Smith\u2019s vision of Marshall For All, Marshall Forever<\/em><\/a> with bringing those ideas into higher education.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy business mentor became Brad Smith while I was at Coalfield Development. Before he came to Marshall, he was my business coach,\u201d Brandon said. \u201cWhen he came to Marshall, he basically said, I want you to take what you’ve learned at Coalfield Development and apply it here at Marshall and become part of this vision \u2014 Marshall For All, Marshall Forever<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a result of President Smith\u2019s vision, the definition of student is expanding at Marshall.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could be a welder on a river barge, a truck driver on the interstate or someone learning online from across the country,\u201d Brandon said. \u201cMarshall for All really means for all<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMarshall for All really means for all.”<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t- Brandon Dennison<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

That shift is reshaping how education connects directly to opportunity across Appalachia and beyond.<\/p>\n

Much of Brandon\u2019s work focuses on removing a choice many working adults believe they have to make \u2014 earning a paycheck or gaining new skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat should not be an if, then proposition,\u201d he said. \u201cWe should be able to learn and earn together, at the same time and have a platform to do that. Marshall Advanced Manufacturing Center<\/a> (MAMC) shows that beautifully with apprenticeships.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through initiatives like MAMC, workers train for careers in advanced manufacturing, robotics, machining and welding while remaining employed. In 2025, MAMC trained nearly 1,200 members of the workforce preparing for high-demand careers.<\/p>\n

\"Derek<\/p>\n

Equally important are the skills employers request most: communication, teamwork, adaptability and leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese durable skills<\/a> are what employers everywhere are asking for,\u201d Brandon said.<\/p>\n

Programs like the Marshall Skills Exchange<\/a> allow learners to build those competencies through flexible online microcredentials that can stack toward career advancement. For many participants, the first credential becomes the first step toward renewed confidence.<\/p>\n

Brandon\u2019s work at Marshall also connects workforce development with entrepreneurship and innovation through the Brownsfield Assistance Center, the Appalachian Resiliency Center, MAMC and the IDEA District.<\/p>\n

Marshall\u2019s IDEA District<\/a> and partnerships between research, education and private investment, are transforming underused spaces in Huntington into hubs for innovation, training and business creation.<\/p>\n

At MAMC alone, more than 300 businesses annually receive support developing prototypes, testing concepts and launching new ventures \u2014 sometimes starting with nothing more than an idea sketched on a napkin.<\/p>\n

Despite large-scale economic goals, Brandon measures success in individual stories.<\/p>\n

\n\tHelping people unlock their potential is how we build a stronger economy.”<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t- Brandon Dennison<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

During a tour of MAMC, university leaders met a recent graduate, a young mother who previously worked at a gas station while struggling to support her family. After completing training at Marshall, she secured full-time employment as a welder and discovered a passion she never knew she had.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe talked about how proud her kids were of her,\u201d Brandon said. \u201cThat\u2019s what this is all about \u2014 helping people unlock potential they already have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each person who gains new skills contributes to rebuilding the region\u2019s economy from the ground up.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, Brandon hopes Marshall will be remembered for changing how higher education serves communities.<\/p>\n

\"Brandon<\/p>\n

\u201cI want Marshall\u2019s legacy to be that we redefined what it means to be a college student,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd by doing that, we helped prepare the workforce of the future. There will always be a special place for traditional 18-year-olds here on campus, but there are also 100 other ways to become a Marshall student and I\u2019m excited about all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

From apprenticeships and microcredentials to entrepreneurship and advanced manufacturing, Marshall\u2019s impact now extends far beyond campus and into workplaces, communities and industries across the region and beyond.<\/p>\n

For Brandon, helping lead that transformation feels less like a career move and more like a calling.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis university has always meant opportunity,\u201d he said. \u201cNow we\u2019re making sure more people than ever can access it.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For Brandon Dennison, economic development isn\u2019t an abstract concept or policy discussion, it\u2019s personal. Born and raised in Cabell County, West Virginia, Brandon grew up understanding both the promise and challenges of Appalachia. Marshall University was always part of that story. His parents taught at Marshall and the institution stood as a gateway of opportunity […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":198,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-moments"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/198"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1644"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1644\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1661,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1644\/revisions\/1661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}