Jackson: Better Schools Key To Fighting Poverty

from Yahoo News

The new rankings of America's poorest cities will be released on Tuesday, a list that Cleveland has been at the top of in recent years.

Mayor Frank Jackson talked to NewsChannel5's Paul Kiska about getting a handle on the city's poverty crisis.

With factory jobs moving on and poverty rates over 30 percent, Jackson knows the numbers and the people behind them.


"Even if we're ranked 50th instead of first, it doesn't matter if you're the one in poverty," said Jackson.

The mayor said improving schools is a big step in the right direction. Good schools lead to higher education, which leads to better jobs.

Jackson believes keeping and attracting new business starts with regionalism.

"And allow companies to move in the region with no harm and have revenue sharing," he said.

But the mayor strongly believes a new medical mart could do more than bring more convention business to Cleveland; it could also spark companies to actually make medical devices in Cleveland, and that means new manufacturing jobs.

"That will help with spin off manufacturing and it should be done in this city and this region," Jackson said.

A coalition of local hospitals wants to train workers for 4,000 openings in health care, including lab technicians and nurses.

Jackson pointed out that 80 percent of people who work in Cleveland and earn their living at jobs in Cleveland live outside the city.

The mayor envisions a 24-hour city with new apartments and condos, attracting more people to live downtown.