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来源类型 | REPORT |
规范类型 | 报告 |
Eds, Meds, and the Feds | |
Tracey Ross | |
发表日期 | 2014-10-24 |
出版年 | 2014 |
语种 | 英语 |
概述 | The federal government has a long history of supporting the work of anchor institutions—entities, including universities and hospitals, that control vast economic, human, and intellectual resources. It has a vested interest in exploring strategies that harness anchors’ power to increase community revitalization and economic growth. |
摘要 | Endnotes and citations are available in the PDF and Scribd versions. The growth of U.S. cities is largely rooted in the nation’s industrial past. As industry boomed, local governments constructed roads, sewers, and water systems, making it easier to live and work in densely populated areas. An increasing number of factories opened, public transportation expanded, and workers formed neighborhoods nearby. In short, cities grew alongside their businesses, and these firms employed workers, paid taxes, and purchased goods and services from other businesses. Not only did businesses make economic contributions to these cities, their owners and management teams provided civic leadership that, in some cases, served as a powerful enabler for taking on visionary projects. The role of businesses in cities has become markedly different over the past few decades. Suburbanization, technological innovations, and globalization have each shifted the idea that businesses are rooted in communities. Communities across the country continue to experience the devastating effects of factory closings, and many of the jobs lost during the 2007 Great Recession will not return as businesses are forced to adapt to a new economic climate. Furthermore, only about one-quarter of low- and middle-skill jobs are accessible within a 90 minute-commute in metropolitan areas. However, some institutions—including colleges, universities, and hospitals—maintain and foster strong connections to the places where they are located and serve many of the same functions as early industry leaders. They participate in local and national markets, employ hundreds—if not thousands—of workers, and purchase from other businesses. These institutions are often referred to collectively as “Eds and Meds,” or anchor institutions, as they are rooted in the communities where they are located. As entities that control vast economic, human, and intellectual resources, anchor institutions have the potential to be important partners in community and economic development work. Universities represent roughly 3 percent of U.S. gross domestic product and employ more than 3 million people annually. The hospital industry is even larger: 5 million Americans work for hospitals and, in aggregate, hospital-sector procurement is in excess of $600 million annually. According to the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, or ICIC, in 66 of the 100 largest inner cities, an anchor institution is the largest employer. Some 925 colleges and universities—roughly one in eight—are based in an inner city, and about 350 hospitals—roughly 1 in 15 of the nation’s largest hospitals—call an inner city home. U.S. hospitals and universities spend a combined $1 trillion per year and employ 8 percent of the labor force. Local leaders increasingly understand the critical importance of anchor institutions within their own cities’ economic development strategies. For example, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (D) recently announced partnership agreements with Baltimore’s major higher-education and medical institutions to advance economic development, public safety, local hiring, local purchasing, and quality-of-life goals. As momentum gathers among mayors to leverage their cities’ anchor institutions, the federal government can help further this process. The federal government has a history of supporting the work of such institutions and has a vested interest in exploring strategies that harness the power of anchors to increase community revitalization and economic growth. While anchor institutions have many resources, they are still institutions focused on their own goals and thus may not readily align their priorities with those of a greater community strategy. Furthermore, anchor institutions are no silver bullet for addressing the socioeconomic challenges that low-income communities face. Still, anchor institutions can play an important role in this work, and the federal government should help encourage it. This report proposes a number of recommendations for how the federal government can do this, including:
This report provides an overview of how the federal government has worked with anchor institutions over the years, the potential roles anchors can play in communities, and how to measure the community benefits of this work. It concludes with detailed recommendations for federal officials to further enhance the role of anchor institutions in communities and to promote communities’ economic development. Tracey Ross is a Senior Policy Analyst with the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for American Progress. |
主题 | Poverty |
URL | https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/poverty/reports/2014/10/24/97480/eds-meds-and-the-feds/ |
来源智库 | Center for American Progress (United States) |
资源类型 | 智库出版物 |
条目标识符 | http://119.78.100.153/handle/2XGU8XDN/435896 |
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714 | Tracey Ross. Eds, Meds, and the Feds. 2014. |
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