I can’t count how many times a day I pick up my phone and say “Ok, Google” to search for directions, the weather forecast, or some other nugget of information. Our reliance on technology is only increasing, and I often ponder: who makes it work? Who is designing the systems to make information available at our fingertips? Who ensures our questions can be answered on demand, day or night, wherever we are?
Google, a company soon celebrating a decade in Boulder, certainly plays a major role, as do other tech companies – many right here in Boulder County. Indeed, there’s no doubt that we have a lot of talented folks here – but many of them moved here from somewhere else, were educated in another state, and acquired their creative and technology skills elsewhere, too.
That brings up a question: what are we doing to grow our own crop of innovators and entrepreneurs? As it turns out, we have a ways to go. According to our TRENDS report, Boulder County children don’t have as much full-day kindergarten as most kids in Colorado, and our achievement gap – the difference between how well kids are doing in school and those who are not faring as well – is one of the largest in the state. That’s not good news.
With Colorado’s robust economy, it’s hard to reconcile our modest investment in schools, which puts Colorado near the bottom in national rankings for funding elementary and secondary schools, as well as higher education. A 2011 study by the University of Denver’s Center for Colorado’s Economic Future tells us that, by 2024, the state will only have enough revenue to fund Medicaid, K-12 education and corrections – not higher education, alternative transportation or many other key items.
We know that – if we don’t invest in education – we won’t have a next generation of homegrown innovators who, in turn, serve and engage in local private, public and nonprofit sectors while keeping our communities creative, competitive and successful. In his classic book, The Rise of the Creative Class, Richard Florida reminds us that investments in talent, technology and tolerance are key to thriving communities in our ever-changing world.
So how do we address this critical issue? At The Community Foundation, we’re investing in the early years of Boulder County children. But philanthropy isn’t enough; it will take a bigger investment from more stakeholders, along with important policy changes. “Building a Better Colorado“ – a statewide bipartisan coalition of community leaders – recently completed hearings around the state, including some in Longmont and Boulder. It looks like there will be an initiative on the November 2016 Colorado ballot that would tackle some of the funding challenges Colorado faces for education, transportation and the provision of human services. These efforts, among others, are a start.
What’s the role you can play?
