As mayor, I work tirelessly to spread opportunity to every corner of our city. Below are just a few of our initiatives under way to make Charlotte a more prosperous, inclusive city.
Increasing tech training for young women
I am committed to introducing more young women to careers in science, technology, engineering and math and am pleased that Microsoft shares this commitment. Through the Mayor’s Youth Employment Program, we connected more than 100 young women with Microsoft’s Charlotte campus and its DigiGirlz initiative to introduce them to cutting-edge technologies, field-specific skills, and leadership development opportunities.
With Microsoft’s creative partnership, these young women received an introduction to the many career fields offered within the High Tech industry, heard from executive speakers, participated in technology demonstrations, networked, and learned through hands-on experience in workshops.
Expanding access to quality out of school time is a major focus of my administration and I am grateful to Microsoft for giving back to our community through these valuable and much needed programs. Click here to view a video of the conference.
Charlotte as hub for innovation and entrepreneurs
We are continuing to create an environment in Charlotte where entrepreneurs and innovators can thrive. Our financial technology industry, or FinTech, is a prime example of this.
Groups like DealCloud, a high growth software-as-a-service company with clients in the private equity, investment banking, and specialty lending space, are proving that true talent and innovation can grow here. I attended DealCloud’s ribbon cutting ceremony as it formally set up shop in the Queen City, and there are success stories like DealCloud every week in Charlotte.
We have always been known as a banking town but now with companies like DealCloud and others we are starting to rebrand Charlotte as an entrepreneurial hub and it is exciting to watch Charlotte’s transformation into a center of technology and ideas. Fintech is a growing industry in Charlotte and I am committed to providing innovators with the environment they need to thrive. My Charlotte FinTech Initiative is gaining momentum, and collaboration with our strong financial and technology partners continues to grow.
Growing the Mayor’s Youth Employment Program
This summer more students than ever participated in the Mayor’s Youth Employment Program and I look forward to working with our schools and business community to grow the program even more next year-- I am especially interested in expanding the number of available internships in science, technology, engineering and math.
MYEP focuses on leveraging relationships with businesses and the community to provide meaningful, career-oriented internships for participants. Program interns receive valuable skills and experience working in offices and businesses across the city in a variety of industries.
Partnering our young people with local businesses expands economic opportunity for the next generation. Our young people receive valuable professional skills and earn extra money for their families while businesses give back to their community and help develop tomorrow’s workforce.
A recent study by the Brookings Institute found an estimated 3 million young people in America are disconnected from a career path– meaning they are not employed or in school. Young people from low-income communities are disproportionately affected as well as young adults without post-secondary education. Research indicates that paid youth employment programs that connect young people to education, training, and the job market can be effective tools in keeping them on a trajectory for future success.
Women and equality
I participated in several events celebrating Women’s Equality Day, and though we have made progress in business and government (such as the first woman presidential nominee in history) we still have much work to do.
Pay equity for women is critical for improving the lives of children and families and for helping families rise out of poverty. Upon taking office last December I requested the city conduct a gender pay equity study for city employees. I was pleased to learn that City Government employees in Charlotte have only a 3% pay gap between men and women compared to 15% for our state and 21% nationwide.
One of the most challenging areas where we must make more progress for women is stopping domestic violence. DV accounts for more than half of all calls to police and despite our dedication of more resources locally to help survivors of DV, we have much more work to do. Spreading awareness is one component of our work in preventing DV and I look forward to my 6th annual volleyball festival to raise awareness for Safe Alliance. For more information about the volleyball festival and to sign up for the fun, please visit dvvb.eventbrite.com.
Update on Out of School Time
I am pleased with the progress we are making for improving out of school time (OST) for middle and high schoolers. After our youth OST summit this spring we have raised private money to hire local OST expert Greg Schermbeck, of Schermbeck Consulting, to examine our OST data, identify best practices in other cities, and to locate a partner in the Charlotte non-profit community to serve as a home for our future OST initiatives. Our goal is to help this partner secure the funds necessary to create an intermediary for parents to find the best programs in their neighborhoods, expand access to affordable programs, and ensure the quality of local middle school OST programs. Of the 20 largest cities in the country, Charlotte is the only city without an organization dedicated to coordinating out of school time for middle and high schoolers. One of the key lessons learned in other cities is that we must start small, achieve specific goals and expand on our successes.
I am encouraged by the support we have received in the community from families, program providers, and non-profit organizations who are interested in serving as a partner going forward. By December 1, we will have identified a community partner to carry out this important work. We will also have identified sources of revenue for local middle school OST programs and a collaborative structure for moving ahead.
