Harrisonburg:
The Shenandoah Valley’s Technology Leader

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The future indeed looks bright for the City of Harrisonburg, located in the heart of Virginia's beautiful Shenandoah Valley. Harrisonburg is proud to be the home of James Madison University (JMU) and its College of Integrated Science and Technology (CISAT). Seven strategic sectors of study in the ISAT Program include biotechnology, information and knowledge management, engineering and manufacturing, telecommunications, energy, environment and health systems. This curriculum, combined with a faculty possessing tremendous industry experience, offers a competitive advantage as Harrisonburg seeks to attract technology developers and to foster the development of homegrown technology businesses.

JMU is also making a strong name for itself in the field of information security. JMU is one of the National Security Agency's original Centers for Academic Excellence for Information Assurance Education. In addition, JMU is the only university in the country with two graduate programs with concentrations in information security.

Recently, the Harrisonburg City Council established by ordinance the Harrisonburg Downtown Technology Zone (HDTZ), a two-by-three-block area in the heart of the downtown. City leaders allocated $2 million to purchase and renovate the One Court Square Building, an old department store, in order to convert it into the Harrisonburg Innovation Center (HIC). These two initiatives serve as the catalyst for creating Harrisonburg's new economy — a model based on technology.

The HIC has identified several key anchor technologies that will define its relationship within the HDTZ and fast-track its ability to attract and cluster information technology firms to position the HIC as a leader in technology research and development. These anchor technologies are: (1) RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), (2) data warehousing and disaster recovery and (3) health information. Taking an aggressive approach to marketing these anchor technologies now, as the building renovation begins, allows HIC the potential to properly design the center to accommodate its incoming companies, and at the same time have additional operational funds when the HIC opens in mid-2006.

Thanks to initiatives such as the HDTZ and HIC, combined with the wealth of resources offered by JMU, the future looks bright for technology development in Harrisonburg, the Shenando-ah Valley and the Common-wealth of Virginia.