Young Professionals are in high demand.  This should not come as a surprise to most 20 and 30 year olds.  There are tons of groups and organizations designed to attract Young Professionals, or YPs.  Here in Cincinnati, you can join a YP group with an interest in just about any topic.  There is YPACS, the Young Professionals of the American Cancer Society, YAD, the Young Adult Division of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, or the Mayor’s YP Kitchen Cabinet, which advises the mayor’s office on issues that are relevant to young professionals in the Greater Cincinnati area. And that’s just off the top of my head.

Why has the term ‘Young Professional’ become such a buzz word? I believe it is because people really want to hold on to our generation, and I mean that in a good way.  Perhaps for the first time in history, older generations are concerned about population growth and what has been dubbed “the brain drain”.  The fear behind the brain drain is that when young people go away to other cities or towns, perhaps for school or for their first job, they will not return to the area.  And, it’s not just about being away from our families, which concerns them directly, but, on a larger societal scale, the problem becomes that when very talented people leave, they take their talent, creative drive and innovative thinking with them.  Hence, the term “brain drain.”

Richard Florida might not have been the first to have the idea of retaining and attracting talented and creative workers, however in his book “The Rise of the Creative Class”, he coined the term “Creative Class,” another phrase that has become important in talks of how to stimulate growth in cities. He also suggested that the upcoming YP generation was different from its parents in its approach to work and style of working.

This new generation requires a new urban environment.  They tend to be conscientious and innovating.  They tend to want to make the most of their cities.  They tend to seek out new and interesting experiences.  According to Jeff Syroney, the Co-Founder of The Cincinnati Fringe Festival, Genrations X, Y, and the Millenials are in a unique position in the years between school and settling down in that they have a lot of time, and resources.  We like to get involved in things and for many of us, the bar scene alone is not enough to satisfy our needs to socialize and create something valuable for ourselves and our community.

This generational desire for something more, something different, something creative can be seen as being in opposition to Cincinnati’s historically traditional reputation.  And, in certain ways, we live in an old town.

But, thanks to the Creative Class of YPs, that is changing.  Organizations all over the area are taking pages out of Florida’s book and working to attract YPs to come to and stay in Greater Cincinnati.

Perhaps one of the most noticeable changes is the growing “Gateway Corridor” in Over the Rhine, or OTR.  OTR often illicits images of violence and crime for many, and yet, in the past few years, stores and condos have sprung up all along Vine and Main Street.

The Cincinnati Art Academy is now located at 1212 Jackson Street, right in the heart of OTR.  Park + Vine, a great organic store that focuses on eco-friendly products, is located at the corner of Central Parkway and Vine.  Then there is Coffee Emporium on Central Parkway at Walnut, and The Know Theater on Jackson Street.  The Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is a few blocks away on Race Street; The Ensemble Theater is on Vine.  YP’s and people who are catering to the Creative Class are transforming this area of Cincinnati known for its violent reputation.  This is becoming the heart of the arts district. 

The gauntlet continues to be held by The Know Theater,  which produces contemporary theater works originating in LA or Chicago that are typically 3-4 years old.  According to Eric Vosmeier, the Managing Director and Interim Artistic Director of The Know Theater, theater is a collaborative exciting art form that is about creating a community.  That community is built not just of the theater community, but, “what we can do to change the city, the block we all live on.”

In the past few years, YP groups have been finding ways in our community to make the changes they want to see.  Give Back Cincinnati started 9 years ago as a way for people to get together and make like-minded friends who wanted to volunteer their time and make differences that they wanted to see in the area.  Joe Hausbauer, one of the founders of Give Back connected his “passion with volunteerism, and that was a big change in my life.”  He also said that it is a “testament to the city that one of the greatest things about Cincinnati is that….I’m just a regular guy and this is a great place to make ideas happen.”

Sometimes, it takes a little effort on our part to find activities and groups that interest us. But here in Cincinnati, there really are so many out there.  So now it’s up to us, the Creative Class of young professionals, and I think we are up for the challenge of getting involved in the community, meeting and connecting with each other and leaving the world with our unique imprint on it