DOVER — Paul Helton, executive director of the Louisiana Economic Development FastStart program, will be the keynote speaker at the Central Delaware Economic Summit on Tuesday.

Mr. Helton’s organization has been a top-ranked workforce-development program in the nation for 12 years, according to the national publication Business Facilities.

The summit, which requires registration, starts at 9 a.m. in the Del-One Conference Center on the Terry Campus of Delaware Technical Community College in Dover. The summit can also be attended virtually through Zoom.

Doors open at 8 for breakfast and networking.

Registration for in-person participants is $30. In-person tickets are limited. There is no cost to attend virtually, but registration is required here.

Mr. Helton has more than 20 years of targeted workforce-development experience, according to his bio.

As the leader of the FastStart program in Louisiana, he has helped create a well-qualified and sustainable workforce for over a decade.

Prior to FastStart, he served as the director of economic development for North Metro Technical College in Acworth, Georgia, leading the Contract Training, Continuing Education and Workforce Programs divisions.

Mr. Helton also managed individual company workforce-development projects with the highly ranked Georgia Quick Start program. Prior to that, he was an independent training consultant and a training specialist with the U.S. Navy’s Trident nuclear submarine program.

A graduate of Regents College of the University of the State of New York, Mr. Helton also holds a master’s degree in adult education from the University of Georgia. Additionally, he is a past president and current board member of the National Association of Industry-Specific Training Directors and an active member of the Association for Talent Development and the Louisiana Industrial Development Executives Association, as well as an Aspen Institute Economic Opportunity Fellow.

Two panel discussions are also part of Tuesday’s program.

The first will focus on transforming the workforce and will feature Dr. Vilicia Cade, superintendent of the Capital School District; Brian Horsey, director of the Delaware Office of Work-Based Learning at DelTech; Scott Malfitano, vice president of CSC and chair of the Delaware Workforce Development Board; and Dr. Jonathan Wickert, director of career and technical education and STEM initiatives at the Delaware Department of Education.

The second panel will reflect a local business perspective provided by Veronica Palomino, human resources and new-hire training specialist for the Eagle Group; Nick Polcino, vice president and general manager of Bally’s Dover Casino Resort; and Scott Rathfon, executive vice president of Delaware operations for Century Engineering.

The summit is a partnership between DelTech’s Terry Campus and the Central Delaware Business and Entrepreneurship Consortium.