Education is the answer to the Central Valley's woes. We've heard it again and again. This time, it came in the form of a Brookings Institution research brief called: The Third California: The Golden State's New Frontier.
Published in March, the report segregates California into three regions. The First California, otherwise known as the Bay area, is noted for high incomes and high educational attainment levels. The Second California is the L. A. basin that became so popular during the last century. The Third California is the interior of the state stretching from Redding to Bakersfield plus the desert regions to the east of L. A.
The report notes that two of five people who are moving to the Third California are doing so because of the cost of home ownership. Between 2000 and 2005, the region grew 14 percent, four times the rate for the rest of the state. Hispanics make up more than half of that growth. More new children under the age of 15 were added to the region that the rest of the combined state experienced.
The report talks about the low education levels of the Central San Joaquin (which includes Fresno and Kings counties) and it suggests dealing with this problem as the most important priority for helping the region reach its potential.
"Ultimately, the answer lies in comprehensive economic development on a broad front, including education and worker training on one hand, and the nurturing of an infrastructure that can accommodate growth industries," the report says.
The future of the Third California is important to the entire state and, the report concludes, should focus on three things to reach its potential:
- Appeal to skilled labor and industries.
- Deal with home-grown problems.
- Build on optimism.
West Hills is at the forefront of finding solutions for these issues. As an Hispanic Serving Institution, we have long sought ways to reach out to our Latino community members with the message of the importance of higher education. Almost half of our students report that they are Latino and most are the first generation in their family to attend college.
The work done by West Hills and others to attract Coalinga State Hospital to the region certainly qualifies as appealing to skilled labor and industries. The hospital will employee 2,000 at full occupancy--many of them doctors, nurses and other highly-educated medical workers.
Finally, building on optimism, the report notes that 75 percent of all adults rated their community as excellent or good. If you ask the folks who live in Lemoore, Coalinga, Firebaugh, Avenal, Mendota and other communities in our district, they will tell you that our region is a long-kept secret. Where others see poverty, we see strong families and communities that value children and the needs of seniors. Parks and open space are at a premium in urban areas. We have miles of back roads where you can hike, run or bike ride. And finally, we're solving the education problem--one student at a time.