The Math Just Doesn’t Work: Why Young Professionals Are Leaving the Hudson Valley
Pattern for Progress announced the creation of a regional initiative to promote young professionals in the Hudson Valley when it hosted the second annual Greater Hudson Valley Young Professional Summit on Thursday, May 23, at SUNY New Paltz.
LIFT/HV, or Leading the Initiative for Future Talent in the Hudson Valley, will focus on nurturing, building and growing the number of young professionals who are essential for the growth and vitality of the Hudson Valley. As part of its efforts, LIFT/HV will create programming to engage young professionals and attract them to the region, and provide them with a voice, opportunities and the ability to shape the future. Pattern is launching the initiative in response to a discouraging decline in the number of young adults aged 20 to 39 in the Hudson Valley and the economic challenges facing them. While 20-39-year-olds make up 27% and 28% of the population in the nation and New York state respectively, that number is a low 24% in the Hudson Valley, down from 27% in 2000.
The reasons behind the numbers are many: declining birth rates; outmigration from the region; high taxes and high cost of living; stagnant wages and a perception there are fewer opportunities for professional growth. A detailed look at the challenges facing young professionals in the Hudson Valley and what LIFT/HV will do to tackle them is included in the attached issue brief. Today’s Wall Street Journal provides further support for the need to address issues surrounding this demographic.
“The shifts that are occurring in the Hudson Valley are to a great extent the result of both demographic and economic challenges that disproportionately affect young professionals,” said Pattern for Progress President and CEO Jonathan Drapkin. “Because the viability of the region’s economy is dependent on its ability to attract an educated and diverse workforce and replenish those who are retiring, Pattern is launching LIFT/HV and working with elected, business and nonprofit leaders to nurture the conditions that will attract and retain the talent of the future.”
The challenges facing young professionals will be one of several topics that will be front and center at the summit that will run from 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday. It will bring together young men and women from the nine-county Hudson Valley region to network, socialize and hear inspiring speakers discuss the future of the Hudson Valley and their place in it. A unique event of its kind in the Hudson Valley, the summit is a collaboration between Pattern and The Hudson Valley Network for Young Professionals, sponsors, partners, chambers of commerce, business associations and young professional organizations throughout the region.
The summit will offer a variety of workshops, panels, speakers, and ample time for networking. Some of the panels include: Understanding your working style – A guide to effective team building; The future of women’s leadership; How I did it – Entrepreneurship in the Hudson Valley; Who’s who in Hudson Valley tech; What’s the secret? What young professional & entrepreneurs need to reach unlimited success; and Inclusive leadership in an evolving & diverse workplace.
This year’s keynote is a young professional and Hudson Valley native from the Central Intelligence Agency. His address will provide inspiration around leadership and unique insights into his career, lessons learned, and how the next generation of Hudson Valley leaders can rise to the challenge facing the region and our future.
After the summit, Pattern will host an after party in New Paltz, and Friday morning on May 24th, attendees are invited to join a free hike at Mohonk Preserve.