Staying where you are

In this Plain Dealer article, a scheme to give extra funding to state universities for undergraduates in certain high tech majors is bandied about. A quote:

Proponents say it would enhance the state's business climate by providing a more capable work force.

The wierdest part of this to me is the assumption that people who go to school in Ohio are going to stay in Ohio, so Ohio will get its subsidy back. Maybe the actual facts on the ground support this assumption, but it seems opposed to how most people think about their options and their goals.

In my view, most young people on their way to or in college consider the whole country (or in some cases the whole world) when they think about where they want to end up when college is over. So, the question becomes, can we count on people who feel like they can go anywhere to stay here?

I like living here and I am from elsewhere, but I honestly don't think Ohio or any particular place in Ohio has much of a tug on the imagination of people elsewhere, so I don't think we can count on the out of state people staying. Maybe they'll see our legendary quality of life while they're here, and obviously some people will stay because they acquire a job or family ties while they're here, but I think the tug of the imagination is more important for most people (especially young people!) than the actual facts.

For a lot (not all) people from Ohio, staying here is going to seem like a compromise on what they could do. "I'm going to stay forever in the place I grew up" doesn't seem in line with what most people want to think about themselves, even if it is in fact what they end up doing.

On the other hand, although staying where you were planted is certainly in opposition to what ambitious and/or capable people are supposed to want, maybe it's a small minority with loud voices that makes that view appear so prevalent. 

¶ 1/07/2006 01:11:00 PM