South By North Strategies, Ltd.

North Carolina’s labor market has struggled since late 2007. Consequently, the state’s next governor and legislature will face complicated choices regarding how best to steer the state back onto a path toward prosperity. To help inform that process, the Global Research Institute of the University of North Carolina commissioned South by North Strategies, Ltd.  to compile social and economic data tracing the state’s journey from recession to recovery between 2007 and 2012.

The research contributed to two policy reports. The first document, entitled Recession and Recovery in North Carolina: A Data Snapshot, 2007-12, explores significant ways in which the “Great Recession” has altered North Carolina’s labor market. The second report, entitled Moving Beyond Plato Versus Plumbing, discusses and contextualizes current policy debates over post-secondary education, analyzes occupational projections, and presents recommendations for helping young people with diverse talents succeed in today’s labor market.

Both reports were featured at the forum “Red States and Purple States: A Roundtable for Journalists,” which was organized by the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication and which took place on September 2, 2012 in Charlotte, North Carolina, in advance of the Democratic National Convention.