PROVIDENCE – Brown University President Christina H. Paxson thinks state officials can do more to foster connections between the business sector and the graduates of higher education institutions that they rely upon.
"We need to get these pipelines going," she said. "We just need better coordination between the business community and higher education.”
The university's investment in the well-known and ongoing economic renaissance of Providence’s Jewelry District – a 100-acre area between the downtown and Interstate 195, located about a half mile from College Hill – is only one part of a bigger ecosystem, Paxson said during the keynote conversation of the 156th annual meeting of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce held Monday at the R.I. Convention Center.
Paxson said Brown University was pivotal in reinventing the formerly depressed Jewelry District, citing its anchor tenancy in the $220 million South Street Landing development and the Wexford Innovation Center. Not to mention the university's Danoff Laboratories, a 300,000-square-foot building with wet and dry lab space that when completed will be the largest academic laboratory building in the state.
“We are not thinking about [these] being another Brown University campus down the hill,” she said. “It's about attracting people and making them want to live their lives here.”
In a conversation with Chamber President Laurie White, Paxson said it was a critical time for Rhode Island’s economy and that competing for labor talent on the international market takes more than investing in education.
Graduates need a reason to stick around. They
may live here during matriculation and enjoy the city’s eclectic nightlife, arts and culture, but what happens after they secure that coveted degree? Well, many head off to New York, Austin, or elsewhere, Paxson said.
“If they have good opportunities here, they would stay in a heartbeat,” she said. "Employers are saying, 'We don't see the talent' and graduates are saying, 'We don't see the jobs.' ”
One bright spot is the focus on sectors such as the life sciences, which, if successful, could make Rhode Island “an economic powerhouse,” she said. “The vision is taking shape in a really great way. ... But it needs to be a shared vision."
A microcosm of the problem is the ongoing shortage of primary care physicians. Paxson said its the same solution, namely providing greater financial incentives.
“Turn the economics around to make it more attractive. We could train more primary physicians but in the current economic environment, we probably wouldn't get more," she said. "What we need to do in Rhode Island is make sure it is an environment where people want to work and where it’s easy to start [a] business.”
There are individual examples of this private investment in workforce development at play.
Keith Kelly, president of Citizens Bank Rhode Island, the event’s presenting sponsor, pointed to the bank’s September announcement that it would donate $10 million over two years to support nonprofit workforce development programs, with $1 million earmarked for Rhode Island.
The money will go toward upskilling the Rhode Island workforce to increase access to career pathways, he said.
“Our focus is on creating long-term growth," Kelly said.
Before the keynote talk, Rick Metters, board chair of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and vice president of regional public affairs and government relations at Fidelity Investments Inc., warned that the coming tax hikes in Providence and the end of federal rescue funds statewide should push elected leaders to take more of a “long-term investor mindset," with the faith that expenditures today will help plug the talent gap years down the road.
“A vibrant pro-business economic environment is the path to prosperity for all Rhode Islanders,” he said.
Paxson said state government can invest in creating business "incubators" all it wants, while missing the long-term goals.
“What happens next?” she asked. “They could say, 'That's great, I'm incubated. And now I'm going to Boston.' "
Paxson ended by noting the well-trodden trope of Rhode Island being run by an insular group of political, education and business elite individuals.
Perhaps an opening up of the market will lift all boats.
“One reason we are so close knit is because we are not really competing with each other,” she said.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
