Judge Leward LaFleur Appointed to CEO - RTPO Executive Committee

ETCOG / Workforce Solutions East Texas • December 15, 2021

Workforce Solutions East Texas is pleased to announce the appointment of Marion County Judge Leward LaFleur to the Chief Elected Officials - Rural Transportation Planning Organization (CEO – RTPO) Board’s Executive Committee. 

 

The CEO - RTPO Board consists of the county judges from each of the 14-counties served by *ETCOG, the Mayors of Longview and Tyler, and the three Texas Department of Transportation District Engineers that serve the ETCOG region. The Board serves a dual function of shared oversight of the workforce programs with the Workforce Solutions East Texas Board and working directly with TXDOT to ensure that transportation priorities are developed and solutions implemented for the rural communities of the region. 

 

“It is an honor to be selected by my esteemed colleagues to serve. This board is so very important for our region. Rural East Texas is well served by the members of the CEO - RPTO Board, and I look forward to the future of Rural East Texas,” said Marion County Judge Leward LaFleur.

 

Judge LaFleur joined the CEO – RTPO Board in 2018 and serves on its Executive Committee with Chairman Judge Robert Johnston of Anderson County, Vice-Chair Judge A.J. Mason of Camp County, Judge Chris Davis of Cherokee County, and Judge Joel Hale of Rusk County. The Board meets during the April, August, and December months to address the joint business agenda of the CEO – RTPO Board in a blended meeting format. The Executive Committee meets on behalf of the full board when needs arrive in between the aforementioned regularly scheduled meeting dates. 

 

“Judge LaFleur has established himself as a leader who cares about Marion County and the entire 14-county region in a very short amount of time,” said ETCOG Executive Director David Cleveland. “We are fortunate to have him as a valued member of our regional team!”

 

Under the Workforce Investment Act, the CEO Board is responsible for the leadership and board appointments to the local workforce development board. The CEOs partner with the Workforce Solutions East Texas Board to build a premier workforce in the region and are the primary source of local workforce policy.

 

ETCOG formed its RPO in 2009 to provide a forum for local elected officials to establish rural transportation project priorities and planning and provide direct input to TXDOT concerning those priorities for areas not included in a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). Through the RPO, all fourteen of our counties and those cities that are not served by the Longview or Tyler MPOs can deliver a unified message to state and federal decision-makers concerning transportation needs and priorities. 

 

The full membership of the CEO – RTPO Board can be viewed at www.etcog.org/about#GoverningBoards. 


*Workforce Solutions East Texas is administered by the East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG).


Request for Applications: High Demand Job Training Grant FY26

By ETCOG & Workforce Solutions East Texas • September 4, 2025
Deadline for applications - September 26, 2025
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By Workforce Solutions East Texas • August 26, 2025
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