Public Policy Associates, Inc. (PPA) Senior Policy Consultant Chuck Wilbur described the potential of Promise Zones to transform distressed cities in Michigan in an article in the Center for Michigan's Bridge Magazine.
Ten Michigan communities have set up Promise Zones designed to provide free college education to high school graduates living in the zone. Mr. Wilbur helped develop the Promise Zone initiative as the education advisor to former Governor Jennifer Granholm and has helped plan and develop the zones since joining PPA in 2010.
The goals of Promise Zones include expanding opportunities for young people in disadvantaged communities, creating incentives for families to live in urban areas, and developing a stronger workforce to meet the needs of current and future businesses.
PPA helps clients develop innovative solutions to public policy issues and is providing technical support to the Promise Zones. Three of the 10 communities are already awarding scholarships, and several others are expected to start with the class of 2012.
Promise Zones are modeled after the Kalamazoo Promise, a universal scholarship program for graduates in the Kalamazoo Public Schools. They are funded by private contributions and, eventually, growth in the State Education Tax.
"It's been very difficult to develop urban policies in Michigan that start to reverse some of the outflows of capital and people away from urban areas," Wilbur told the magazine. "There was at least a suggestion in Kalamazoo that they were making the river run uphill, when you contrast it with the rest of the state." Here is the complete Center for Michigan article.
Public Policy Associates is a national research and evaluation firm specializing in education and workforce development, criminal and juvenile justice, human services, and economic revitalization. For more information, visit www.publicpolicy.com.
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