Mansfield Rising 2.0 🚀
Eight local residents are attending South By Southwest (SXSW), a world-renowned festival for tech and ideas in Austin, TX. Follow along with their daily blog posts as they research and develop new ideas to bring back to Mansfield.
Pretty lofty ideal, huh? But it’s something I believe in or I quite literally would not be attending South by Southwest with the second delegation sent as part of the Mansfield Rising effort.
To be selected to represent the “education” portion of OUR city is a reality that a humble kid from Greenwood Avenue has a hard time wrapping his head around at times…but here we are and we got work to do!
When I was asked and accepted this invitation, I came with one sole focus: How do we get our city and our schools to be a unified force to make each the absolute best in north central Ohio, and create a true symbiotic relationship?
I envision us as a place where public education, higher education, technical education, entrepreneurship, technology advancements, and local government can create an environment where young people are given the opportunity and the motivation to grow, stay, and want to be.
I know it’s possible. One time, long ago, someone had some very influential words for me, and I have held those words close to my heart as I have forged my path to grow, stay and want to be here.
Needless to say, SXSW offers thousands of opportunities to learn. I’ve listened to a Poet Laureate, the director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division, young leaders speaking on curbing gun violence, a CNBC journalist and the managing director of Endeavor (a venture capitalist firm) discussing the growth of technology in the Heartland, and a panel of Department of Defense alumni on the impact and future of tech in national defense (think cybersecurity).
Here are a few ideas melded from these first three whirlwind days that I have come away with:
We are the product of our diversity and our diversity is what makes us great. When we create a truly inclusive environment that HEARS and includes the voices of ALL of its citizens. Because, after all, it’s about THE PEOPLE. And we MUST give the people agency to affect change.
We need to continue growing our workforce preparation efforts. Get people prepared for the jobs Mansfield, the surrounding cities, and the world have to offer. We need to continue to align what our schools produce in its graduates and their abilities to meet the needs of employers.
We need to continue addressing the drastic need for mental health services being available to all who want and need it. Loneliness in the post-COVID world is a real issue.
We have dysfunctions that must be overcome. Is AI the answer? Is it a part of the answer? Is it something to be afraid of? I don’t know the answer to any of those question, but I do know that collaboration is definitely part of the answer and we are moving forward in that direction. The SXSW contingent(s) are proof of that.
Our city is a canvas that is waiting for a glorious artwork to be placed on it. Together we can accomplish this.
We need to continue investing in us. People and their talents are our capital. People are where they want to be — we need to give them the tools and opportunity to be great where they are.
That place is here. The time is now.
