leadership southcoast, class of 2009

our voice
eliminating racism
empowering women
ywca - newsletter

Spring 2009, Volume 2.3

Above: Members of the Leadership SouthCoast Class of 2009: Athena Mota, YWCA Southeastern MA; Charlene Rocha, Child & Family Services; Caroline Cuccia, United Way of Greater New Bedford; John Long, Bristol Community College hosted "BE LOCAL." Photo by: Jason Perry, SouthCoast 247.

On March 26th, a "BE LOCAL" event was held at the new Rose Alley Ale House, bringing attention to the issue of the "brain drain." This refers to the decreasing likelihood that a college graduate will settle in the area after earning a diploma. Lack of job opportunities, higher pay scales, and other factors often beckon people away from the region, particularly those aged 25 -34. "We want to raise awareness about the brain drain issue while giving people a chance to network and foster new relationships that will encourage them to stay connected," said Caroline Cuccia, Director of Marketing & PR, United Way of Greater New Bedford. "The major issue contributing to the brain drain is that there are limited employment opportunities for young people to work local and therefore, live local. We are encouraging our young graduates to shop local, dine local, entertain local, volunteer local, and if possible to live and work local--to "be local," " said Athena Mota, Director of Advocacy and Communications, YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts.