In the heart of Detroit, a historic train station stands as a symbol of manufacturing’s renaissance, while nearly 1,400 miles away in rural Colorado, a century-old high school represents the future of distributed innovation. Though separated by geography and scale, both Michigan Central and the Emergent Campus in Florence represent bold attempts to reimagine how communities can retain and develop talent while adapting historic infrastructure for tomorrow’s economy.
Foundations Built on Transformation
Michigan Central Station, once a crumbling monument to Detroit’s industrial decline, has been transformed into a hub of innovation and collaboration. Ford Motor Company’s $950 million investment turned the iconic structure into a center for mobility research, bringing together startups, established companies and educational institutions under one roof. The project exemplifies how historic infrastructure can be reimagined to serve contemporary workforce needs.
“The station itself is a symbol of Detroit’s resilience,” explains Josh Sirefman, CEO of Michigan Central. “By restoring it as a hub for cutting-edge industries, we’re showing how the city’s legacy of manufacturing America’s automobiles can power a new economy. Detroit was built on innovation, and that same spirit now drives breakthroughs in mobility, climate tech and advanced manufacturing.”
Similarly, the Emergent Campus in Florence, Colorado is redefining how rural communities can become centers of innovation and workforce development. Housed in the 100-year-old Florence High School, this nationally acclaimed technology center has been repurposed for business incubation, co-working and commercial office space. Since 2019, this transformed space has been responsible for nearly 100 new tech-based jobs in Fremont County, creating over $13 million in overall economic impact annually. The campus demonstrates how rural communities can attract and retain innovation-driven businesses through dedicated workspaces, professional networks and partnerships with major employers.
Talent Development Through Experiential Learning
Both models prioritize hands-on, experiential learning that connects directly to regional advantages and local industry strengths. At Michigan Central, students and professionals work alongside researchers and entrepreneurs on mobility solutions that build upon Detroit’s automotive expertise and logistics connectivity, including autonomous vehicles and smart manufacturing systems. The campus offers unique infrastructure that doesn’t exist elsewhere, like the Transportation Innovation Zone that cuts permitting for real-world testing from months to weeks, partnerships with the Port of Monroe for maritime technology pilots and the Advanced Aerial Innovation Region spanning 3,000 square miles for drone testing.
“Michigan Central brings everything that startup founders want and need to one place: rapid prototyping labs, more than 270,000 square feet of advanced fabrication and manufacturing space, logistics support, four square miles for real-world testing in a dense urban environment and a built-in community of more than 240 investors, academics and startups,” says Sirefman.
The Emergent Campus similarly emphasizes project-based learning, but with a focus on retaining local talent that might otherwise migrate to urban centers. Students work directly with campus tenants like Barn Owl Precision Agriculture to develop robotics solutions for farming, or gain experience with companies like Pax8, which prioritizes hiring local residents for remote technology positions. This model reverses rural brain drain by creating career pathways that allow young people to access high-tech opportunities without leaving their communities.
Experiential learning addresses a critical gap in traditional education. While universities excel at providing foundational knowledge, many graduates still require extensive on-the-job training. Both Michigan Central and Emergent Campus models compress this learning curve by integrating practical application from day one.
Building Bridges Between Industries
One of the most striking similarities between these initiatives is their commitment to extending existing innovation ecosystems rather than competing with them. Michigan Central strategically connects Detroit’s automotive heritage with emerging mobility technologies, bringing together traditional manufacturers, tech startups, urban planners and policymakers. This approach positions Detroit not as a Silicon Valley competitor, but as a specialized hub that leverages its unique manufacturing expertise.
The Emergent Campus takes a similar ecosystem approach, but in reverse: it extends Colorado’s established I-25 tech corridor from Boulder through Denver to Colorado Springs and into rural areas. Rather than trying to recreate urban tech hubs, it creates satellite locations in rural communities that maintain connections to venture capital, urban employers and technological expertise. This “hub and spoke” model allows small towns to participate in the innovation economy without abandoning their rural character.
Transforming Higher Education’s Role
The partnership between Emergent Campus and Trinidad State College illustrates how rural higher education institutions can evolve beyond traditional models.
“One of the main reasons I chose to work in community colleges is because I’ve always felt that we are in the best position to advance economic mobility—out of any institution in society,” says Dr. Rhonda Epper, president of Trinidad State College. “But since I’ve lived in rural Colorado, I’ve realized it’s not enough for a rural college to carry out the traditional higher education mission. Rural colleges must do more to help their communities prosper.”
Under this partnership, Trinidad State’s vision extends far beyond individual student success.
“At Trinidad State College, our vision is to raise the prosperity of our entire community,” explains Epper. “That means economic mobility for individuals and shared prosperity for the local economy. It means building a workforce while simultaneously building the economy that needs that workforce. The Emergent Campus model gives us a strategic lever to influence economic development at a level where most colleges don’t traditionally engage.”
The collaboration creates unprecedented opportunities for students.
“Emergent Campus Trinidad is our de facto ‘Career Center’ and it’s unlike any college career center I’ve ever seen,” says Epper. “Students walk across the street and enter this vibrant hub of energy and entrepreneurialism. At our Tech Nights, the students socialize with local entrepreneurs—and I use that term broadly to include everything from remote workers to startups to local legacy business owners.”
Economic Development Through Innovation Ecosystems
Both models recognize that workforce development and economic development are inextricably linked, but they address different challenges within this relationship. Michigan Central serves as an anchor for Detroit’s transition from traditional manufacturing to advanced manufacturing and mobility innovation. The facility attracts talent, investment and new businesses while building upon the region’s existing industrial infrastructure and workforce expertise.
The Emergent Campus addresses the inverse challenge: how rural communities can participate in the knowledge economy and preserve their local culture and demonstrates that “rural reshoring” can be a viable alternative to urban migration. The campus also creates a multiplier effect not by importing talent, but by developing and retaining it locally while connecting to broader innovation networks.
“Several of the businesses that were incubated in Florence are in the beginning stages of expanding to the Trinidad campus,” says Christine Louden, executive director of the Emergent Campus. “For instance, Three Rocks Engineering is offering remote internships, Second-61 has created openings for their planned office at Emergent Campus – Trinidad, and Barn Owl Precision Ag has made several demonstrations to high schools, elementary schools and Trinidad State College robotics students and is starting to work with farmers in the area.”
The economic impact extends beyond direct job creation. Both models foster entrepreneurship, with students and researchers launching startups based on their work. This creates a pipeline of new businesses that can drive long-term economic growth.
Addressing the Skills Gap
Perhaps most importantly, both Michigan Central and the Emergent Campus directly address the persistent challenge of geographic inequality in the innovation economy. Traditional models concentrate high-paying tech and advanced manufacturing jobs in expensive urban centers, forcing workers to choose between career advancement and community connection. These initiatives offer alternative pathways.
Michigan Central leans on Detroit’s lower cost of living to create opportunities for workers who might be priced out of Silicon Valley or Seattle. The Emergent Campus takes this further, demonstrating that rural communities can access high-tech opportunities without urban overhead through remote work.
“We measure success by business growth and how deeply we connect Detroiters to opportunity,” says Sirefman. “Programs like our free skills training program for adults on electric vehicle charger maintenance (EVSE Tech Training Program) show the impact: with a 90% completion rate, 20% of graduates have already landed jobs in EV and tech, and some have even launched startups.”
The focus on continuous learning is another shared characteristic. In rapidly evolving fields, skills can become obsolete quickly. Both models emphasize lifelong learning, providing pathways for professionals to update their skills and adapt to changing industry requirements.
Looking Forward
As automation and artificial intelligence continue to reshape the job market, the parallel evolution of the Michigan Central and Emergent Campus initiatives demonstrate that innovation in workforce development doesn’t have to be confined to a single location or approach.
Both models share a commitment to historic preservation as an economic development strategy. Michigan Central’s restoration earned recognition as both an architectural achievement and economic catalyst, while Emergent Campus received History Colorado’s Board of Directors’ Award for its adaptive reuse of Florence High School. This approach proves that honoring the past and building the future aren’t contradictory goals; rather, they can be mutually reinforcing.
“I see the model we have developed with Emergent Campus as one that creates a cycle of generational wealth and prosperity rather than perpetuating generational poverty, which has happened for way too long in rural America,” says Epper. “This approach reduces the wealth gap for individuals and it also helps to close the urban-rural wealth gap.”
Whether repurposing historic infrastructure or creating entirely new educational models, the goal remains the same: preparing people for meaningful work in an economy that rewards creativity, collaboration, and continuous learning. As these models mature and expand, they may well define the future of how we develop talent and drive economic growth in the 21st century.