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Leigh Hopkins is a Senior Project Manager with the Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) at Georgia Tech. As a planner specializing in economic and community development, Leigh empowers her clients with the tools to build strong and resilient regions, create a prepared and trained workforce, and help communities secure the resources they need to capitalize on their strengths.  Leigh works with her team at CEDR to help create competitive economic climates for communities and businesses to grow and thrive.  Prior to joining Georgia Tech, Leigh worked as a senior planner for the City of Atlanta with a focus on zoning and development compliance, and also in the private sector as a planning consultant with a focus on place-based economic development issues.

Since starting her position with Georgia Tech in 2008, Leigh has conducted numerous studies and plans for communities across Georgia.  A specialist in strategic planning and workforce development, Leigh managed the federal, multi-agency Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative for the 15-county Northwest Georgia region for five years, and the development and implementation of the first Advanced Manufacturing Strategy in the state. Leigh also co-managed a project to gauge the feasibility of developing an “innovation district” near Atlanta’s Westside, intended to spur collisions between industry and academia to create the environment for technological innovation and new partnerships.  Leigh has led a workforce development project for the Northwest Georgia region through the state’s High Demand Career Initiative (HDCI) since 2017, developed strategic priorities assessments for rural communities across the state, and led a county-level impact assessment of covid-19 on the Northeast Georgia region.  Recently, Leigh developed the first Economic Recovery + Resilience strategic plan for the largely rural 14-county Southwest Georgia region after it was impacted by Hurricane Michael in 2018.  Currently, Leigh is leading AI-focused strategies for nine regions in Georgia, creating a “Communities of Practice” for the Georgia Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing (GA-AIM) project through EDA’s Build Back Better initiative.

Leigh was the course director (2014 – 2017 and 2019) for all of Georgia Tech’s economic development courses, including the Georgia Tech Basic Economic Development Course (BEDC), accredited through the International Economic Development Council (IEDC).  Leigh is an active member of the American Planning Association (APA)/Georgia Planning Association (GPA) and has held an American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) certification since 2010. Leigh is also a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD), certified and accredited by IEDC since 2023.  She participates in regular professional development courses through membership with IEDC and GPA and is also an active member of the Georgia Economic Development Association (GEDA). Leigh holds a Bachelor’s degree in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia, and a Master’s degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology in City and Regional Planning.