LETTERS TO THE EDITOR March 11, 2011

What the Portland Business Alliance is all about

Contrary to a recent opinion column published in the Vanguard, the Portland Business Alliance has been a longtime supporter of public education in this region, from K-12 to higher education.  The Alliance recently endorsed the Portland Public Schools bond measure and has a long history of raising funds, supporting initiatives, and even advocating for an increase in fees and taxes on businesses to support public education. 

What the Alliance is focused on right now is something that Portland State University students should care deeply about and support:  private-sector job creation. When PSU students graduate, we want there to be a wide variety of well-paying employment opportunities available so students can begin their careers and prosper.  Additionally, there is a direct correlation between the number of family wage, private-sector jobs, education and the overall health of our region. 

The Alliance recently released an economic study, A Check-Up on the Portland Region’s Economic Health, which kick-started an important conversation about where the Portland region is headed.  The study showed how a decade of declining wages, incomes and private-sector jobs is stunting our economic growth and putting us on a path to continued shortfalls in funding for schools, public safety and other critical public services.  In an income tax dependent state like Oregon, we need the revenue generated by workers to fund the public services we all need and want.  When there isn’t enough tax revenue generated by private-sector jobs, we find ourselves coming up short.

Following on the economic report, we wanted to hear from our partners in government, labor, education and social services. So in January we held a Jobs Summit to tackle how to better grow and retain private-sector jobs. About 140 public- and private-sector leaders came together at that summit, and we came to agreement on one important point: Our first and foremost priority in the Portland region must be to regain a vibrant economy that provides healthy, family-wage private-sector jobs that in turn generate sufficient tax revenue to support important public services, such as schools, human services and public safety.

After building a common understanding of what we want to collectively accomplish—a strong economy with quality jobs and better wages and incomes—the summit’s participants delved deeper, coming up with specific near-term action items that will lead to private-sector job growth. The number one action item was: Improve the region’s educational outcomes. 

The Alliance sees PSU is a crucial partner in improving our region’s education outcomes and we have supported the university in a number of ways.  From our Chairman’s Scholarship that benefits PSU business students to our support of the adoption of a new, PSU-centered urban renewal district, we are a champion for PSU’s growth and advancement.

We hope that our work to increase jobs and improve education is something students can support.  You can learn more about our efforts and read our economic studies at www.valueofjobs.com.

 Sandra McDonough,

President & CEO, Portland Business Alliance