Building blocks for reversing the brain drain

By Christian Fong

Some have said that brain drain, the out-migration of our educated youth, is an inescapable part of Iowa's culture.

But that assumption is costly and paralyzing. Fortunately, it is also false.

Iowa can attract and retain our best and brightest, and we have a tool kit to do it.

On May 14, the Generation Iowa Commission, on which I've served since its inception in 2007, presented an annual update on brain drain at the Iowa Department of Economic Development.

First, the bad news: Iowa lost 7 percent of its 25- to 44-year-old population between 2000 and 2008. The flight of our next generation is particularly pronounced in Iowa's rural areas and smallest towns (down 16 percent) and our small cities (down 12 percent). But even our urban areas had a 2 percent loss.

Out-migration is concentrated among our most educated, with the percentage of Iowans with advanced degrees plummeting to eighth worst in the nation. Simply put, our overall ability to attract and retain college graduates has flat-lined.

Why? Iowa surely has attractive places to live. Wisconsin-based Next Generation Consulting ranked Cedar Rapids and Des Moines among the nation's top 12 “Next Cities” for young professionals. But strong community values and a rich quality of life cannot support a family alone.

Brain drain is a symptom of a broader economic development problem. Most of Iowa lacks the economic foundation that can attract and retain young people. Over the last decade, we have not created enough good jobs in career paths that new graduates are choosing.

There are glimmers of hope. Some communities have become a magnet for the next generation. Namely, the counties containing Des Moines, Iowa City and Ames have shown growth in the key 18- to 44-year-old demographic. (Linn County is unchanged and all other urban counties have lost such population.)

These are the building blocks (see box) of reversing brain drain. It will take vision to commit the next business cycle to an economic transformation and the humility to work together regionally. This vision is not only pro-growth, it is pro-Iowan. Because it acknowledges that the people of Iowa are no longer cogs in the machine of an old industrial economy, but are instead the key wealth-creating component to the modern knowledge economy. That Iowa's true core business is recognizing and cultivating lifelong human potential.

And that the Corridor has all the tools to make sure it starts here.

Christian Fong, a Cedar Rapids businessman, chaired the Generation Iowa Commission, was a candidate for governor of Iowa in 2009 and leads The Iowa Dream Project (visit www.theiowadreamproject.com). Comments: cfong@christianfong.com