WINTER 2015
local universities was the most effective
way to show students what the city could
provide after graduation, an objective current Mayor Karl Dean continues to focus
on today. Considering the progress the city
has seen in the last fifteen years, the plan
appears successful in attracting the new
generation of the young and educated.
Two things differentiate our current
generation of graduates from our parents.’
First, the city and not the job is the greatest determinant of our next stage in life.
As Purcell describes it, the expectation
for graduates forty years ago was to find a
job opportunity that would eventually lead
you to the “right” place. Millennials are
prioritizing location instead. Before we
apply to jobs, we refine and select a list
of cities that would be acceptable. From
this list, our job searches begin. Second,
our generation is hyperconscious about
what a city should deliver to an individual
and his or her growing family. Our behavior, including migration patterns, reflects
how we have higher expectations of cities’ public policy, culture, affordability,
and social scene. “This is a generation is
made up of people who are entering their
DOMESTIC
careers and their profession with the expectation that place matters and that place
should deliver a high quality of life for
them. They expect greatness, they understand what is possible, and they will insist upon it,” says Purcell. Though little
data exists on this topic, Purcell reasons
that we believe in cities, understand the
advantages of them, and see ourselves residing in them not just for the early part
but also the entirety of our lives. As cities
continue to meet the needs of the young
and restless graduates, they will continue to see an increase in urban dwellers.
While there are various paths to accruing a greater pool of educated, young
people, Purcell does not attribute a city’s
success to any single, simple solution.
Even though quality of life will vary per
person, a city’s sustained commitment
to the essential aspects of a city, such as
education and public safety, will be the
greatest key to attracting a new class. For
sustained commitment, all city residents
have to be committed to the idea, which
has been possible in Nashville. Once a city
has proven itself as a safe and prosperous
place, it can direct more efforts and re-
sources towards raising the quality of life.
The willingness to understand the wants
and needs of the new grads will lead to
further improvements. For example, graduates’ commitment to being outdoors and
active have influenced Nashville’s shift
towards providing sidewalks, greenways,
bikeways, and safe ways that provide opportunities outside. Therefore, the cities
that have seen spikes in college graduates
are not only doing one thing right, like
providing accessible public transportation, but also committing themselves to an
overall greater quality of residential life.
Though these generalizations by no
means encompass the trend of our whole
generation, graduates our age are more
likely to follow a promise of vibrant city
life rather than a particular job opportunity
in a less impressive city once they leave
college. As the newcomers, we can reboot
locations to newfound heights. Our opinions will be heard. With greater expectations for cities, we have the potential to
shape the political, social, economic, and
cultural outlooks of our destination cities.
To prepare, we must now think about what
change should transpire when we settle in.
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