Florida in the Lehigh Valley

In the book, Rise of the Creative Class, economist Richard Florida discusses his theory of an emerging social class in America which he titles the âCreative Class.â He arrived at this theory after noticing that younger generations of workers were no longer following companies to cities in search of jobs but rather moving to cities that could offer them lifestyle options and interests, freedom, acceptance and creativity. To these job seekers, the job offerings had become secondary â and this trend seemed to have a corresponding positive impact on that cityâs economic growth as it then tended to attract the best, brightest and biggest employers. According to Florida, the larger the pool of members of the Creative Class, the higher the rates of growth in innovation and technology businesses, as well as increased employment opportunities. In order to successfully attract these individuals, cities had to have all three of his creative characteristics: technology, talent and tolerance. Not an uncommon thread in economic theories, the arts play a huge role in Floridaâs theory. Cities across the nation, and the world, quickly began to develop manifestos on how to turn their struggling regions in hubs of creativity, culture and power. As an arts-based fundraising professional working in the third-most populated region in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I am very interested in Floridaâs theory as it relates to the Lehigh Valley. The purpose of this paper is to examine the key characteristics of the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton (which comprises the Lehigh Valley) and how they relate to Floridaâs creative characteristics of technology, talent and tolerance.M.S., Arts Administration -- Drexel University, 201