When you talk to someone not familiar with the region that you work in Orlando, the most common response is something along the lines of, “What’s it like working at a theme park?” Although it’s not necessarily bad be perceived as a tourism driven economy, because that’s what the area is for the most part, it’s not all the region has to offer. In fact, a paradigm shift has been slowly working for years, shifting the economy away from tourism to diversify the region into a world-class center for big business and startup entrepreneurs alike. Many leaders say this... Read more

Research Park has helped the East Orlando region become the world leader in simulation in modeling. Leaders say the next step is applying the technology to the medical field. By now you’re no doubt aware of some of the economic engines driving the local East Orlando economy. Fueled by the University of Central Florida, multiple government defense contracts, healthcare, a growing technology industry and all of the supplemental businesses that support these giants, the area is on its way to positioning itself as an economic leader in the future. These are high-wage jobs that could change the... Read more

The bad news? The unemployment in Central Florida sits at 12.1 percent and the national unemployment rate recently rose to 9.9 percent. The good news? Locally, that’s down from 12.5 percent in the previous measurement and local experts think that unemployment numbers here have peaked. Still, in both the short and long-term, where will relief come from for residents of Central Florida? The answer may reside in the numbers. “As far as the numbers are concerned, there isn’t one thing in particular that causes them to continue to rise; rather, it’s more like there’s nothing... Read more

The Emergency Department is the point of entry for stroke patients at Florida Hospital East Orlando and where Dr. Thomas and the entire stroke team will begin the treatment process. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, first recognized stroke and called it “apoplexy”, which means, “struck down by violence”, in Greek. Unfortunately, humans have been, and continue to be, “struck down” by the same disease for thousands of years. Despite the hard work of scientists and physicians around the world, mankind, has yet to find a cure for stroke. “We are closer to... Read more

Every day in the United States, 202 children are arrested for violent crimes, and 377 children are arrested for drug crimes. Every day, 2,175 children are confirmed as abused or neglected, and every day, 2,222 high school students drop out. These numbers, according to a study in December 2009 by the Children’s Defense Fund, confirm that at-risk youth is a problem in our country. At-risk youth can be defined as any person under 18 that faces violence in schools, an unstable family structure, drug abuse, pressure from the media, gang activity or a combination of any of these, according to At-Risk.org.... Read more