Business and labor leaders, policymakers, scientists and advocates from across the state gathered in Charleston on Tuesday and Wednesday for the Brighter Future conference. Panelists from a wide variety of organizations discussed West Virginia’s economic future and how to prepare the state for the uncertain times ahead. Read more in the Charleston Gazette, State Journal, West Virginia Public Broadcasting, the Charleston Daily Mail, the Huntington Herald-Dispatch and West Virginia Metro News.
To see Ted’s presentation on the Future Fund from the conference, click here.
The WVCBP’s annual State of Working West Virginia was released this past Labor Day weekend. The Charleston Gazette and the Beckley Register-Herald both discussed the report, which focused on how, over the past three decades, the state’s largest employer has changed from Weirton Steel to Wal-Mart and what that shift means for the state’s employment future.
There was continuing coverage of the Our Children Our Future policy workshops in the Parkersburg News-Sentinel. The workshops will culminate in the Policy Symposium on September 24 and 25 in Charleston, sponsored by the West Virginia Healthy Kids and Families Coalition and the WVCBP, which will focus on eliminating poverty in West Virginia.
One way to reduce the number of West Virginians living in poverty is to increase the minimum wage. On Thursday, September 5, Sean was invited to debate the need to increase the minimum wage with Hoppy Kercheval. Listen here.
Yesterday, Ted presented to the Governance and Finance study group of the West Virginia Early Childhood Planning Task Force, which was created by Governor Tomblin in May 2013. The Task Force will release its recommendations to the governor by December 31 on how to improve the quality of the state’s early childhood system and strategies for its implementation and governance. Ted’s presentation is available here.
