Lecture: "Changing Patterns of Knowledge and Skill in the Metropolitan U.S."
Henry Renski, Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, discusses his research on workforce polarization as part of the 2009-2010 CPPA Faculty Colloquium Series.
Existing research suggests that the U.S. employment mix is evolving toward a bipolar distribution of high-skill and low-skill jobs as mid-skill jobs move overseas. This polarization has the potential for exacerbating social and class differences, although these effects may vary widely across metropolitan areas -- a problem that has not been sufficiently studied due to the scarcity of suitable time series data.
In this talk, Henry Renski (Assistant Professor, LARP) will share preliminary findings from his recent study of occupational growth trends between 1990 and 2000 to determine whether substantial workforce polarization occurred nationally and by metropolitan area. The results from Renski's study have implications for understanding technological change and wage inequality, as well as the forces influencing regional economic development, workforce development, and educational policy.
Renski joined the LARP faculty in 2007 and teaches courses on quantitative methods, spatial analysis, and state and local economic development. Prior to joining LARP, he worked as a Special Assistant to the Governor of Maine and as a Research Economist with the Maine State Planning Office. His doctorate is from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.