Best Practices for Solutions
The "Tipping Point" of Memphis is Now
Memphis and Shelby Country have lost population for the first time since the Yellow Fever epidemics almost a century-and-a-half ago. From 2000 to 2007 Shelby County lost 43,012 inhabitants, most from the City of Memphis, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. The eight-county Memphis MSA gained 16,485 primarily due to foreign immigration and the fact that most who left the city and county remained in the MSA.
In the meantime, though, Nashville's MSA gained 96,725, Atlanta 369,760, Birmingham 20,628, Little Rock 25,220, Louisville 24,698, Charlotte 190,631, Jacksonville 118,813 and Dallas 229,749.
"The ability of Memphis to serve as an economic magnet for people of this region...is clearly in question," Dr. John Gnuschke, director of the Sparks Bureau of Business and Economic Development, was quoted as saying in The Commercial Appeal. "Unless we develop high-quality job opportunities in abundance, it is unlikely we will be an attractive place."
Memphis has problems that place it at a disadvantage compared to other cities. Our public schools must educate disproportionately more children per capita - and more poor children - than any other district in the state. Moreover, Memphis is rated one of America's most dangerous, least healthy and least educated cities.
We know what works.
We just have to commit.
Breaking the poverty cycle begins with education. Education begins at conception.
First steps are critical. To improve Memphis and Shelby County we must start with our children. We must take economic and social steps now to improve the well-being of the next generation and have positive impact on our entire community in the future. We must begin at conception.
We must decide how much money we can, and are wiling to, invest and set measurable goals that we expect to achieve. We must decide what kinds of long-term social changes we want and then identify the best strategies to make those changes. We know that investing in very young children pays a tremendous return. Studies estimate a $17 return for every $1 invested.
Armed with reliable data about best practices and interventions that benefit children and families, we have the capacity to address the following variables:
- The up-front investment in very young children to improve Memphis and Shelby County
- The long-term return on investment from reduced crime, better education, lower unemployment and less reliance on public assistance
- A time frame for addressing these problems
- Our priorities for determining which constituencies can provide the greatest return
We can determine where we will achieve the greatest return on investment, both socially and economically, by focusing on the people most in need and implementing interventions that we know to be successfully.
--
For more information on best practices for solutions or a copy of the Urban Child Institute 2008 Data book, please contact Scott Wilson. The Urban Child Institute will be releasing this information on their updated website later this fall.
