I was asked recently to answer two rather straightforward questions for a college student locally as a part of a homework assignment. As I gave my answers, I wondered how the average citizen would answer these same questions? I wondered how my peers on the BCC would answer them? I'm sure the answers would be all over the map because there really are no "right" or "wrong" answers--alot of this is ideological and subjective. I do believe education is critical though--and I think most would agree on that point. And I do believe there is a direct correlation between a community's level of education (on average) and the community's quality of life (e.g. a highly educated, highly skilled community will enjoy a community with better schools, better amenities, and better jobs than a community that has a lower level of educational attainment)
Here are the questions and answers I gave....
- What is
your vision for the future of Escambia County?
My vision for Escambia
County is fairly straightforward. I want to help create and foster the
conditions that allow for the private sector to create employment opportunities
that are varied and well-paying. Traditionally our area has been a
two-legged stool, with Military Jobs and Tourism-related jobs. Beyond this,
we have had lots of low-wage service sector jobs. So the big vision is
jobs diversification that makes us less dependent upon the DoD and the Beach
related tourist seasons (which the 2010 oil spill illustrated was very
vulnerable to damage if conditions at the beach ever faced an environmental
issue). We are now seeing some significant jobs growth in the private
sector in manufacturing, aircraft service and repair, and back office support
(NFCU). I believe it is essential for the County to take a leadership
role in economic development which brings this jobs diversification, which in
turn raises the entire regional GDP. When the entire region improves
economically, this provides the revenue the County needs to fund other
essential functions like public safety and infrastructure as well as quality of
life initiatives. If the private sector flourishes, this “rising tide
raises all boats” and all the functions of government can do well and tax rates
on property owners can be held steady and not raised while the functions of
government are fully funded and the quality of life for all citizens becomes
gradually elevated.
- How is
higher education helping prepare students for this vision?
Higher education is a
critical component in a successful community. In order to fill the
essential and high-wage jobs that drive an economy—an educated, highly skilled
workforce is required. As we transition toward a more
information-centered and applied-science workforce, advanced degrees and/or
advanced technical competency is required. These skills are largely the
product of a student’s diligent efforts at attaining an advanced degree or
certification in a college or career center. The more of these students
that are employed, with their concomitant high salaries, the better the quality
of life for the community. With high income areas comes better
neighborhoods, less crime, more public services available, and better
schools. With higher income demographics, the private sector sees the
need and satisfies the demand for a higher quality of goods and services, and
this pushes out lower-end retail (check cashing, pawn shops, payday loans) and
brings in a higher caliber of businesses (high-end automotive, fine dining,
research and engineering firms) All of this also leads to housing being built
by the private sector that is high end, single family and less multi-family and
low-income housing. All of this positive change occurs because of the
presence of a highly skilled, educated workforce.
No comments:
Post a Comment