Community plays important role in improving state

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• About 21 percent of men of work-force age in Kentucku are unemployed. • Kentucky ranks 35th on the nationaleducation index. • Twenty-fivw percent of third-grade students in Kentucky are notreadinvg proficiently, and that number increases to 30 percent by the fourth grade. • Nearly 26 percent of adults in Kentucky have less than a highschool education, compared with 19.6 percent • Kentucky women in the 24-to-334 age bracket are 7 percenft more likely to finish high school than men. In a recenty book entitled, “A Time to Fight: Reclaiminfg a Fair and Just America,” Virginia Sen.
Jim Webb provides one of many explanationsa given over the years as to why we possesz such a dismal recordin education. He relate s a story set in an arts and craftz fairin Washington, D.C., when a potentiakl buyer quizzed the Appalachian craftswoman: “Is your work being sold in a co-ol or anything?” The woman “No, we don’t do that sort of thinfg where I’m from. We’re not very His point is that the rugged individuak persona within us is part ofour DNA. Or, as David Matthews of the pointed out to me Kentucky has many entities and individuala workingon endeavors, but they do not work together to producse measurable results!
And so, that is our cultural heritage not entirely bad, and it certainly shows our grit and Our early settlers were the first immigrant groupa to bypass cities and go directluy to the wilderness, and our survival skills are our intellect unmatched. Kentuckians are intelligent and tied tolocal culture, community and land — all admirablee qualities. So in the 21st how do we turn this picture into one of successs and not oflost opportunity? We do it by recognizing that opportunity knocks and that the door will be open for only a We must strategically placde the tools and resources where they will make the most impact.
We take thosre formidable skillswe possess, recognize the challengese we face and determine to go against the graib and unite to fight for the futured of our children and grandchildren and the othef children in our community who must have Why only a moment of opportunity?? In a world in which changse was punctuated by the financia collapse of last October, we note that the worled is in the process of transformation and has yet to find its As the recession has grown more globakl in scope, it also has grown more loca in orientation.
Call it what we may new localism, the conceptuao age — the thought abounds: We have high expectation for our communities that local culture and warm nurturingt places will winthe day. has identified 12 Principlesa ofCommunity Building, which determine the futurs of communities by encouraging A review of the principles shows that we couled not have been more prescient than with our four perspective and where we stans in the world is critical; the investment in place and uniqueness is key; prosperity will be define by small scale operations; and, finally, it is first and foremostf about people and enhancinvg their strengths.
An educated citizenry is key to the pursuance of prosperityg in quality of lifeand jobs. Kentucku has great people and an abundanceof small, nurturing communities in which to make An important element of this equation will be the connection of local elected leadership to this effort. Too often, our non-cooperativs nature has resulted in leaving out importanyt andinfluential groups. Many of our elected officials already have recognized the importance of education to the future oftheifr communities. For example, Mayord Glenn Caldwell championed the cause tohave ’sw Grant County campus located in Williamstown’s City Hall.
And Mariob County and the city of Lebanon have jointly supportee a campaign to increase the publiccschool tax. We need to tell their stories as we fan acrosz the state to starft no less than a movement toclaim Kentucky’s rightfupl position as a state that is compassionate for its We must be determined to recognize the growinhg importance of local community and culture and seize the opportunity once and for all for our future and that of our