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The survey is available on the [ithaca Forward] website at www.ithacaforward.org. It takes about 10 minutes to complete and is open to all young professionals who live, work or play in Tompkins County. Respondents don't have to be a member of [iF] or have attended any [ithaca Forward] events in the past, in order to participate. It asks them for their opinions on quality of life issues such as jobs, cost of living, housing, transportation, entertainment, the environment and community attitudes toward young professionals.
“We think it’s critical to have measurable information about the things young professionals in Tompkins County like and don’t like about the area,” says [ithaca Forward] board member Jodi VanVleet. “We already have some ideas based on informal discussions and conversations, but we don’t have anything concrete. The survey will give us hard data we can use to work with local municipal, business and economic development officials to help stem the brain-drain taking place in our area. It will help us and local leaders see the community in the same way the next generation of leaders sees it.”Next Generation Consulting Inc., a national consulting firm that specializes in working with young professional organizations, developed the survey. It includes a set of questions created by [ithaca Forward] with the help of Tompkins County Area Development and the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce. Next Generation will tabulate the local results and provide comparative data from other similar questionnaires conducted by young professional groups across the country. [iF] is the first Young Professionals group in New York State to conduct this particular study, which is known as the “YP Global Impact Survey.”
VanVleet says, “The results will also be valuable for [ithaca Forward] itself, because we can use the data to better serve all young professionals in our area, in terms of programming, activities and events. The information will also tell us what issues we should be addressing and what we should be advocating for, on behalf of young professionals locally and across the state.”
The survey will be available on the [iF] website through December 28th. The results are expected to be available in January 2008.
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