The Next Threshold: Higher Skills and the New England Economy

Authors

John C. Hoy, New England Board of Higher Education

Abstract

The history of the New England regional economy — its attenuated post-World War II decline and subsequent aggressive renewal — reveals an intensifying relationship between economic resurgence, the supply and continuing demand for professional manpower, and the results of academic research and development. The New England region has "outproduced" the rest of the nation in supplying professionally trained men and women, a leading factor not fully appreciated by those describing the region's robust economic health in the decade since Neal Peirce wrote The New England States. New England's "oversupply" in professional fields has given the high-tech and sophisticated services sectors a decided national advantage.

The single most important factor in the enhancement of New England's future competitive edge nationally and internationally is the maintenance of the current knowledge-based surge of economic growth. This will be accomplished through the continued capacity of New England's higher education system to oversupply and adjust to the knowledge-intensive employment demands of the future. If the supply of educated manpower and the nationally prominent research and development capacity created by the professionals of the region are to continue, New England cannot rest on current success. Now is the time to use equitable and quality education for all our people to build the foundation for the region's future prosperity.

Recommended Citation

Hoy, John C. (1986) "The Next Threshold: Higher Skills and the New England Economy," New England Journal of Public Policy: Vol. 2: Iss. 2, Article 8.
Available at: https://scholarworks.umb.edu/nejpp/vol2/iss2/8