Encouraging Brain Gain

What are you doing to stem the “brain drain” of trying to keep highly trained college graduates in your community? City Councilman John Crawford of Ft. Wayne, IN along with two other city council members set their salaries and some special income tax funds into a “Brain Gain” Fund under the supervision of the local community foundation.

This fall they awarded the first of three college loan-repayment grants of $2,500/year for four years to April Bledsoe, Aaron Diers and Jeffrey Newcomer. Two of the winners already have master’s degrees and the third is working toward it.

Crawford said of the program, “This program is truly in its infancy, but these individuals each have excellent credentials and fit the profile for the program perfectly.”

Are you doing anything to add to your own “brain gain?”