Agenda - 06-25-1991 - Laserfiche WebLink

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3. NARRATIVE PROPOSAL: SECTION I -VI Respond in writing to the following questions. Begin each section on a new page by restating the section title (ho however, the total length of secctiionsI thro Allot each section, ugh VI should be no more than 25 pages (including requested budget summaries). SECTION I.- STRATEGIC ANALYSIS AND PLANNING ISSUES: Expand upon the original analysis of the nature of poverty in your area and the issues related to moving families out of poverty in your county, given the lessons learned and additional information garnered from the stage one planning process. A. Summarize the strategic issues specific to your area, including, but not limited to your strengths, weaknesses, barriers to self - sufficiency, "warring incentives" and timely opportunities for systemic change. The Orange County economy is a study in contrasts. The strengths are well - known. It is one of the ten wealthiest counties in the state. Consistently, the County has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the state. The rapid growth of the research triangle and the opening of Interstate 40 has led to the development of new and expensive sub - divisions for professional and managerial workers in the Triangle. Orange County is a part of the Raleigh - Durham metropolitan area which boasts the highest number of doctorate degrees per capita of any metropolitan area in the country. This apparent prosperity obscures some of the problems inherent in the Orange County economy. Over 15% of all county citizens live in poverty. With relatively little industry and with a large part of the employment occurring in state -owned enterprise, the tax base is low. Although the unemployment rate was only 2.4% in April, 1991 (as compared to a 5.6 % rate state - wide), it rose by one -half percent since December, -1990. Even if County citizens are employed, many of the jobs in Orange County are low- paying service industry positions, many of them in state government. Only 7.13% of all Orange County citizens work in manufacturing in contrast to almost one -half who are employed in low- paying government jobs. 27% of the jobs available in the county pay less than the poverty rate for a family of three, the average -sized family in the county. Ironically, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a symbol of the county's high educational status and wealth, is one of the largest contributors to the working poor in Orange County. While the county does have a disproportionate number of well- educated people, there is a significant problem of low educational expectations among some county citizens. In the early 1980's, the dropout rate in Orange County Schools System persisted at the 10% level, 3-4% higher than the state -wide IStatistics from the 1989 Poverty in Orange County Conference 6/19/91 The Orange County OFF Draft TWO Proposal