City of Seguin

Alora Wachholz serves as Director of Economic Development and Executive Director of the SEDC, where a deep commitment to public service guides her leadership. Shaped by her upbringing in a small town and firsthand experience with economic hardship, she believes economic development is ultimately about improving lives. By championing quality jobs, educational opportunities and businesses that value people, she works to strengthen families, build resilient communities and create lasting economic opportunities that benefit both individuals and the region.

Growth That Belongs: Matching Opportunity to Community

I’ve never believed that every business investment or development project belongs in every community and that’s okay. Every community is shaped by its own people, history, heritage and culture. Those qualities aren’t cookie-cutter and development shouldn’t be either. Growth comes to communities because of what makes them unique and the goal is to ensure that growth strengthens, rather than changes, that identity.

Every community is also at a different stage of its growth, with its own goals and priorities. I’ve learned it’s important to consider that, lean into it and be proud of where that community is. Whether the focus is creating primary wage jobs, enhancing quality of life or preparing for the next phase of development, growth should match the community’s needs at that time. Putting people first and respecting where a community is in its market cycle is what makes development successful.

Good public administration means the community guides the discussion, while we serve as conduits to help create successful futures that reflect who they are and where they are. When development is guided by those principles rather than trying to force a square peg into a round hole, it creates the kind of long-term community investment that endures.

Beyond Investment: Creating Lasting Community Impact

One of the moments that continues to stay with me is our work to help bring a Texas State Technical College (TSTC) campus to Seguin. It wasn’t simply about attracting a major investment; It was about creating greater access to quality, skilled education for manufacturing and industry and an investment in the future of our workforce and our region.

Finding the right property was part of that journey, but what made it truly memorable was sitting down with the family who had owned the land for generations. The conversation quickly became much bigger than a piece of property. It became about the legacy this campus would leave for the family, TSTC, the City of Seguin and future generations.

Putting people first and respecting where a community is in its market cycle is what makes development successful.

That experience reinforced what responsible development means to me. It can never be just data-driven or about finding the location that checks all the boxes. It has to respect the history of a place, the people connected to it and the future it helps create. That’s when investment becomes more than growth. It becomes a lasting legacy for the community.

The Value of Credentialing: Learning, Leading and Giving Back

Earning my Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) designation, Master Economic Development Practitioner (MEDP) certification and, most recently, my Certified Texas Economic Developer (CTED) credential has never been about having letters after my name. What I really got out of those credentials was the process. They provide a professional and ethical standard that guides our field across different communities and economic development roles, while continually reminding me of the ultimate goal of our profession and my responsibility to help guide it ethically and professionally and to continue elevating it.

The credentialing process is really about continued education. It has allowed me to connect with other professionals and thought leaders, share ideas and open myself to new opportunities and innovative ways of approaching our work. Every experience has helped me grow, both personally and professionally, while challenging me to consider how I can give back to the profession based on my own experiences.

I’ve always considered that a wonderful gift. Bringing together that collective knowledge, sharing ideas, mentoring new and upcoming professionals and helping ensure they have a leg up in the profession are what make the journey meaningful. To me, the real value of credentialing isn’t the recognition; it is using everything I’ve learned to strengthen the profession and, ultimately, better serve the communities that depend on our work.

Transparent Leadership: It Takes a Village

Throughout my career, I’ve never found it easy to identify one initiative as the most significant because every effort to grow a community feels personal. You see the small successes along the way and over time they come together into something much greater. That’s one of the greatest privileges of public service. You’re rarely taking credit for an initiative because it truly takes a village.

The opportunity to build the economic development program for the City of Saginaw from the ground up remains one of the experiences that has shaped me the most, both personally and professionally. Starting with a clean slate challenged me to ask the right questions. What did the community want? Who were the stakeholders? How could I earn their buy-in and lead transparently and ethically from the very beginning? Most importantly, how could I make meaningful change in a way that wasn’t scary for the community?

What I’ll always remember is the excitement that process created. People began putting forward their own ideas because they finally felt there was someone to help carry that vision. Bringing something into existence where nothing had existed before was incredibly meaningful, but what mattered most was seeing it grow beyond any one person. To me, that’s the true measure of public service, creating something that continues to serve a community long after you’ve stepped away.