It’s no secret that Cleveland is changing. But how? According to a new report, “Globalizing Cleveland: A Path Forward,” the city is experiencing a brain gain, with per capita income on the rise. The report is Part 2 of a 3-part series from the Center of Population Dynamics at Cleveland State University. Part 1, “From Balkanized Cleveland to Global Cleveland“, sketched a theory of change for Cle relating to economic and community development.
Key findings from Part 2 include:
· Greater Cleveland’s emergent knowledge industry, measured by STEM/Health Care employment, increased its job totals by nearly 25% from 2003 to 2013.
· A region’s growing knowledge economy translates into wage growth. The metro’s per capita income increased from $33,359 in 2003 to $44,775 in 2012, a gain of 34%.
· Also driving up per capita income, Greater Cleveland is experiencing a brain gain. From 2000 to 2012, the Cleveland metro gained over 60,000 people aged 25 and over with a college degree. Most of these gains, approximately 40,000, were made from 2006 to 2012.
· Fueling this brain gain are young Clevelanders. The number of college-educated 25- to 34-year-olds in Greater Cleveland increased by 23% from 2006 to 2012, with an 11% increase occurring from 2011 to 2012.
· The skill level of the metro’s young adult workforce is world class. In 2009, according to Pitt economist Chris Briem, 15% of Greater Cleveland’s workers aged 25 to 34 had a graduate or professional degree, which ranks the city 7th in the nation, ahead of Chicago, Seattle, and Austin.
· The sources of Cleveland’s brain gain are geographically diverse. Nearly 50% of educated individuals coming into Cuyahoga County from 2007 to 2011 did so from another state. When it comes to net migration, Atlanta, Detroit, and Pittsburgh were the biggest feeders for those arriving with a bachelor’s degree, while Chicago, Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Pittsburgh sent the most in-migrants with a graduate or professional degree.
· Concerning international brain gain, half of the immigrants that came into Cuyahoga County from 2007 to 2011 were college educated. Out of those educated migrants, 64% were Asian, 14% were European, and 8% were African. Sixty percent (60%) of all educated migrants had graduate or professional degrees.
· The landing spots for young and educated migrants, termed “Global Neighborhoods”, included parts of Downtown, Ohio City, Tremont, and Edgewater, as well as inner-ring suburbs of Lakewood and Cleveland Hts. Parts of outer-ring suburbs are also represented, including Westlake, Mayfield Hts., Beachwood, and Olmsted Township.
· The parts of Cleveland experiencing the greatest brain gain are also where the greatest wage increases are occurring. Nearly 50% of the residents of Cleveland’s Global Neighborhoods work in emerging industries, particularly the “eds and meds”. The number of Global Neighborhood residents who made more than $40,000 a year increased by nearly 50% from 2002 to 2011.
Read the report here.