Education Key To 'New Economy' Jobs

Education may be the key to Louisville becoming a regional employment leader.A new study from the Greater Louisville Project shows that 36 percent of the city’s workers have what are called 21st century jobs. 21st century jobs are more permanent, knowledge-based jobs in fields like health care and information technology.Carolyn Gatz, the director of the Greater Louisville Project says Louisville is on the way to becoming an area leader for such jobs, but without a better focus on education, that won’t happen.Kentucky lawmakers have proposed cutting higher education funding, which could be devastating to Louisville’s ranking for new jobs.“Countries that are making progress in terms of growing their economy, they are not cutting those funds," says Gatz. "They are continuing to invest no matter what it takes.”Louisville’s overall increase in 21st century jobs was higher than in Nashville or Indianapolis, even though total employment rose only slightly in the city.