More than just a Speedway; more than the stats would suggest

On Thursday we were in Martinsville, a city in southside Virginia with the highest unemployment rate in the Commonwealth.  As of March 2013, the unemployment rate was 14.4%; it has been north of 10% for the past five years.

Martinsville and the surrounding county of Henry were among the areas hardest hit by the offshoring of manufacturing in the 1990s and 2000s, with textiles leaving first and furniture manufacturing following shortly thereafter.  Since the passage of NAFTA in 1993, approximately 18,000 people have lost their jobs.  In a community of roughly 75,000, you can imagine the broader societal impact.

However, if you dig a bit deeper you begin to uncover a reawakening in the area.  Though the unemployment rate remains very high, it has fallen four percentage points in the last year.  Most of this was driven by the expansion of existing businesses in the area, but also the addition of new, more entrepreneurial ventures.

The spirit of entrepreneurship was prevalent in our meetings with Mayor Kim Adkins, who is starting a small business herself, and other community leaders.  Mayor Adkins in particular highlighted the recent efforts to change the culture around new business development in the region.  She specifically highlighted the strength of broadband in the area, as well as the new businesses that have opened recently in the area.

Our afternoon panel included City Manager Leon Towarnicki, Director of Community Development Wayne Knox, Community Zoning Officer Susan McCulloch, Kathy Rogers, Executive Director of  Piedmont Arts, and Leanna Blevins from the New College Institute.

Wayne kicked off the meeting by telling us that Martinsville is "more than just a speedway;" indeed, our discussion highlighted the increased role of regionalism, a greater focus on the community's existing assets, and improvements in education and workforce development. [for reference, Martinsville Speedway hosts two NASCAR races each year, nearly doubling the city and surrounding counties in terms of population].

The three big takeaways from this meeting were really the increased role of "thinking regionally;" an increased focus on developing the community's existing assets; and a renewed focus on education and workforce development.  The work across the region to promote collaboration (for a future post, no doubt) is really impressive, and the work that's taking place in Martinsville, particularly at the New College Institute, was promising.

The latter of these was closely linked to our first meeting in Martinsville, with Patrick Henry Community College.  Here, we met several local leaders, including Dr. Angeline Godwin, PHCC's President, Rhonda Hodges, Dean of Workforce Development, Melvin, the Student Body President, and Jeff Kohler of GENEDGE Alliance.

In general, it was encouraging to hear about the work that PHCC is undertaking in an effort to break the cycle of unemployment and poverty.  Dr. Godwin in particular provided a compelling narrative on changing the mindset of the current and future generations, so that they too don't fall behind their peers.

Not only our hosts, they gave us a tour!  Rhonda Hodges highlighting Martinsville.

Throughout all of our meetings, a spirit of resolute optimism was clear.  Whether it was the renewed focus on workforce development and education via the New College Institute and the efforts at PHCC; or the entrepreneurial spirit of the city government, it was obvious that Martinsville is moving beyond its past.