Truly a Comeback City

Cleveland. The Mistake on the Lake as some people have called it. Well guess what? That so-called mistake has kicked it into high gear for the past 10 years and we look nothing like what you remember.

A dying industrial city. People leaving in droves. Crime. No entertainment. Dirty. Unaccomplished. Abandoned buildings all over the place. And no prospects for the future. This is what people have assumed about us for the past few years ever since we past our industrial and manufacturing prime. But guess what? While you were scoffing at us we were changing, growing, shaking off the rust and not looking back.

We have world class basketball, football and baseball stadiums. We have a brand new 1 million square foot convention center. We are hosting the 2015 NCAA Basketball Tournament, the 2014 Gay Games, the 2015 Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame inductions among many more and we are the finalists for the 2016 Republican National Convention with Dallas. Countless hotels are being built and remodeled to keep up with demand.

Clevelanders are getting younger and smarter. From 2006 to 2012, 60,000 people with a college degree came into Cleveland and the number of newcomers between the age of 25-34 increased 23% from 2006 to 2012 with an 11% increase from 2011 to 2012 alone.

Places like Ohio City, Tremont and the whole area encompassed by the 44113 zip code has 41 percent of its people working in the knowledge field and that the percent of working people making $40,000 a year went from just 23 percent in 2002 to 42 percent in 2011. 

The city is catering to the younger population, hosting concerts and events that draw people to the city and the dining and entertainment business is booming. Over 22 restaurants opened in downtown Cleveland in 2013 alone. Festivals and city wide parities exist on almost ever single weekend. Just look at this video from our New Year's Party for 2014. I was there, it was insane. There were thousands of people packed into Public Square and it was freezing and snowed all night, but Cleveland rocked out all night long. And better yet, it proved that Cleveland was back and better than ever. See the video here: CLE Rocks NYE

Ohio City is thriving as West 25th welcomes more new breweries and restaurants every year and the Flatts are being revived into a new entertainment district complete with new green space, apartments and our new aquarium.

Cleveland can hardly keep up with the rising demand of housing. With housing costs well below the national average, people who come here are staying here. There are more than 1,200 housing units slated to open in the next 24-months even with 800 being built in 2013. The Greater Cleveland Alliance estimates that the Downtown population will reach 15,000 by the end of 2015, the highest in the city's history.

Not only are new buildings being built, old ones are being repurposed and refurbished. The people of Cleveland have embraced the old, industrial buildings, former 20^th century boutiques and various sites once used for the maintenance of streetcars and turned them into restaurants, shops, galleries, even our aquarium. The relics of Cleveland’s past are quickly becoming the beacons of the future, bringing entertainment, quality dining, new business and so much more to the city. Cleveland’s past is supporting it’s future, paving the way for a bright, new city ready for the national stage.

Cleveland hasn't been sitting around. While everyone was making fun of us and saying that we would never amount to anything, we weren't listening. We were busy innovating. This city allows for people to get actively involved. Entrepreneurs thrive here. People with big dreams of opening clothing stores, small galleries, restaurants, bars, breweries, almost anything can find a home here. We welcome innovation and imagination. You can make a difference here.

Cleveland is back and ready for people to know it. We don't fit into a mold. We won't bend to fit the status quo. We are all different and we accept that. People who make fun of this city don't understand it, they've never been here to feel the electricity in the air during Tribe games, Festivals, and local parties. Once you get here and really experience it, you'll know why we defend this city to the death. This city is our city and it's time for the world to see how far we've come. 

Guess what? Cleveland still rocks and better yet, we never really stopped. 

Links to Sources: Shaking off the Rust, Cleveland a City Repurposed, Visualizing Cleveland's Future, DCA Annual Report

An Equal Opportunity Killer

This week the world was again shocked and saddened by the passing of an illustrious actor. Phillip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on Sunday Feb. 2, 2014 at 11 a.m.

Hoffman was found on the floor his bathroom with a syringe in his arm Sunday morning after his ex-wife raised concern about him not picking up his children.

After searching the apartment, investigators found close to 50 unopened envelopes (other sources said 70) of what is believed to be heroin. Used syringes, prescription drugs and empty bags that are suspected of once holding heroin were also found at the scene.

Hoffman's death comes after a long string of highly publicized, high profile, celebrity deaths. It seems like every few weeks we are hearing another tragic story of a celebrity found in their house, apartment or hotel room with the cause of death unknown only to have us learn later that is was due to drugs.

In the past few years, the world has watched as the death announcements of celebrities such as Corey Monteith, Amy Winehouse,Whitney Houston, Heath Ledger, Michael Jackson and others have scrolled across our television screens with the title: "Cause of Death Unknown, But Suspected Overdose Likely."

I know that I felt totally shell shocked when I heard about the death of Corey Monteith. He was the first celebrity that really touched my generation and I remember the tears forming as I told my roommate the news as she looked at me in disbelief.

Drug overdoses make people angry. I remember when I mentioned Monteith to my sister, she scoffed and said "It was his own fault."

The public has a really hard time feeling sad about a preventable death especially in the case of famous people. I can tell you that I have heard "They totally had it coming" more times than I am comfortable with.

And it makes other celebrities angry. On Feb. 3, Rob Lowe tweeted, "Philip Seymour Hoffman's sad, untimely passing has me angry. I want more great work from him! I want less destruction from drugs/alcohol."

This was right after a tweet that said, "You are not smarter than your drug. Or more knowledgeable, powerful, stronger or anything else. Addiction is an equal opportunity killer."

People are missing the bigger picture with drug overdoses.

Drugs, alcohol and a carefree lifestyle permeate the culture of Hollywood. People have lots of disposable income, free time and they can pretty much get away with whatever they want. But that doesn't mean that they aren't human. And you know what? Drugs plus humans typically equals addiction, especially when you can get your drug of choice easily and in mass quantities.

Addiction is the killer.

Addiction is what drives people to the overdose. And no, it isn't a willpower thing. Doctors and professionals have proven that time and again. Addiction is a disease and you need to be treated for it like any other disease.

We incorrectly assume that people just pump these fatal cocktails into their bodies just because they can. While that may be how it starts, that is never typically how it ends.

Addiction is a terribly slippery slope and it takes incredible strength and courage for a person suffering from addiction to stand up, take ownership and get help.

It is time that we stop punishing and start helping. Stop condemning and start being compassionate. You taking ownership of your addiction or telling a friend that is it time to get help could mean the difference between life and death.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction, please call the National Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Center at 1-800-784-6776 or visit your local hospital for help.

Information for this article was taken from the CNN.com article Piecing together Philip Seymour Hoffman's final hours by: Shimon Prokupecz, Jethro Mullen and Jason Carroll

Fourth Grade Reading Levels? Are We Serious?

The American education system is diseased and we aren't just talking about a common cold that can be cured with some tea and a cold compress.

I mean fatally diseased. Like Bubonic plague or Ebola.

I guess a more accurate assessment would be cancerous.

There are parts of our education system that have become almost too broken and sick to save, so the only viable option is cutting those parts away or purging it with heavy duty radiation to rid it from the system.

While I think that the whole system in general is very broken, I am actually reacting to the very disturbing study done by CNN in response to shocking data released by Mary Willingham about the reading levels of collegiate athletes at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

Willingham did her own research in her position as a graduate student at UNC-Greensboro and looked at the reading levels of 183 UNC-Chapel Hill athletes who played football and basketball from 2004-2012 and found that 60 percent read between fourth- and eighth-grade levels and between 8 and 10 percent read below a third-grade level.

The issue goes beyond that too. It was exposed two years ago that student athletes from UNC were given credit for classes they did not attend, among other things. The professor at the center of the scandal was indicted by a grand jury last month for fraud.

CNN launched their own investigation in response to the data and found that the issue was present in a number of public universities. They requested the SAT and ACT scores from 40 institutions where open record laws apply and heard back from 21.

Hitting close to home from someone who lives in Ohio and habitually roots for the Buckeyes, the data from The Ohio State University is troubling.

While they initially denied CNN's request for ACT and SAT scores to be released, OSU offered up the Wide Range Achievement Test results when CNN asked for aptitude tests in lieu of the SAT/ACT scores.

The spreadsheet provided is clunky and difficult to make sense of, but it is obvious that there are a number of student athletes, specifically football players in OSU's case, that are scoring that the elementary levels in math and reading.

While the majority score at the high-school level or above, it is troubling that this problem is being taken so lightly by these big name universities.

Athletics are the lifeblood of many large universities in this nation. In 2012, the University of Louisville earned a profit of $26.9 million from its men's basketball program alone. That is 60 percent more than the $16.9 million profit that UNC had from their men's program.

But should these universities overlook the obvious academic shortcomings of the student athletes they admit just because they can make a killer three pointer or run the ball down the field for a 67-yard touchdown?

My argument...no way.

Universities should be ashamed at themselves for allowing students who are underprepared for college into their institutions just because of their athletic skills.

The argument about college athletics seems to be getting more and more intense as the years go on and more is being exposed about just how much is being hidden from the general public.

We go to college to learn. To expand our minds and become functioning contributing members of society.

Lots of students work incredibly hard academically to get into the school of their dreams. They agonize over test scores and each and every paper grade. Why should people who can throw a ball get special preference academically over those who actually study hard and want to further their education in college?

As I said, the education system in America is diseased and if we ever want to compete on a global scale education-wise, preferences and allowances for underperformance and academic negligence need to be taken off the table as options for our college athletes.

That being said, I appreciate what they do. I love watching OSU students play football and basketball. I cheer on my own college football team, but it will never be acceptable for education and learning to be put under athletics.

Because you know what they are first? Students. They are going to school to learn, not play basketball or football.

After all, the body decays and breaks down, but the mind can stay sharp and honestly, how far is the fact that you have killer footwork and a good arm going to get you in corporate America?

Education is important. Let's stop acting like it is in second place.