We need jobs

Clarksdale’s unemployment rate is nearly double that of the entire state of Mississippi. In 2016, we had 478 businesses in Clarksdale. Eight years later, we have 450. That is unacceptable. We cannot afford to lose any of our existing businesses. We need to help them succeed and use that success to show that Clarksdale is ready to go to work.

Economic development is complicated. You need a workforce that is trained, educated, and eager to work. A company or investor looking to move to Clarksdale is going to want to know that our city is safe, inviting to look at, and has good schools. Investments mean more and better jobs.

But more than anything else, economic development is a community project. Schools will improve when parents get involved — but schools need to create a place that encourages parental involvement. We need innovative approaches to curriculum – robotics, sciences, and mathematics. We need to integrate our high schools and community college into a unified career path that trains our students for jobs of the future – technology, finance, health care.