tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087256805680013672.post149986343959393333..comments2023-09-30T04:47:47.475-04:00Comments on STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT: WHY CAN'T STARK COUNTY GET INVIGORATED EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP?Martin Olsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15795894229375940645noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087256805680013672.post-23881107653358975552009-06-23T11:37:18.012-04:002009-06-23T11:37:18.012-04:00Provincial is a good term for it, bd. After I gra...Provincial is a good term for it, bd. After I graduated from Mount I never considered staying. This was mainly because all of my friends moved to Columbus because there are jobs and a lot more to do. But I did end up staying for 18 mos after graduation because of family issues. I worked for a CPA firm in Canton and the "take it or leave it" attitude was overwhelming. And as you said, the main reason I got that job was because a friend from college worked there. Management was not only unwilling to receive any feedback/ideas from younger professionals, but you were actually mocked for trying to bring anything to the table. Things like "Oh, well I guess Will has all the answers based on his extensive experience. Maybe we should make him partner this year." It was an awful environment to try to encourage even the most incremental change and I think that attitude is rampant throughout the area to some degree.<br /><br />Stark Co. needs to face facts. Blue collar jobs are not coming back en mass. With the help of fantastic tax abatements and other tools they may be able to attract some smaller operations. Stark Co. is never going to be a cultural/social hub even relative to other cities in OH. As a result, you're never going to convince mid 20's professionals to want to move there. The smartest bet is to make the area appealing to people like me. People that grew up there and moved away. They need to convince me that when I get married and start a family I should raise my kids there. Low home prices and good schools are key, and they have that. But they don't have the jobs in ready demand and the lack of ideas on that front is concerning.Will Brubakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08585087035480170285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087256805680013672.post-35498193013876688702009-06-23T02:37:42.493-04:002009-06-23T02:37:42.493-04:00Has Canton ever been supportive of it's local ...Has Canton ever been supportive of it's local graduates? In the first interview I ever had when I graduated from college in 1969 I was told that a college degree was useless and I'd wasted my time. Employers want to hire people who work, not sit around in classrooms. I eventually ended up with secretarial work. <br /><br />One of the real drawbacks in Canton back then, which I think has improved (it couldn't get any worse) was the cultural setting. Anyone interested in arts, culture, politics and intellectual debate and discussion was considered weird and "dangerous." That said, those activities are still downplayed and held suspicious--not important to the life of a city, when in fact, they are very important. <br /><br />Canton has always had a very closed system. If you had a degree you got a job at Timken, or Hoover. Anybody else tried for the phone company or a steel mill. Jobs depended on who you knew, and I have the feeling that that is still the practice. On top of it, companies treated their employees terrible. If you don't like the way we do things, leave. We don't need you. <br /><br />I never for one moment saw anyone or anything that encouraged people to stick around. From what I gather nothing has changed.<br /><br />Lately, everybody seems to hate Canton. Any small improvement or achievement, is derided and degraded: Oh big deal, a small factory opens and hir4es 20 people. Well, that won't last long. People are waiting for big industry to return and it won't. They avoid technology. Cantonians are provincial. Just read the comments in the Rep. Who would want to bring a business to Canton with these know nothing idiots? I think they want the town to die.Marley Greinerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15184124024369071862noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087256805680013672.post-88707617187416824322009-06-23T00:34:02.748-04:002009-06-23T00:34:02.748-04:00Enjoyed the post, Martin. As a former Hartville r...Enjoyed the post, Martin. As a former Hartville resident and MUC alum, Stark Co's issues are all too important to me even though I live in Columbus. My entire family is still in Hartville/Uniontown. I'm glad you called things what they are...tired and uninspired. My dad and I joked today that Stark Co. could have saved the money spent on Next Generation Consulting and just reprinted the report from the study Youngstown did. Same "solutions".Will Brubakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08585087035480170285noreply@blogger.com