I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jason Dorsey this morning in Roanoke about his work as Generation Y’s voice in communicating with older generations. His book – My Reality Check Bounced – is a wonderful read about how 20somethings can cash in on their real-world dreams.

Jason repeatedly mentioned how fantastic a city Roanoke is from the times he has visited. He lives in Austin, Texas and tells a story of how it grew from 100,000 in population in the 80s to now 700,000. It’s growth can be attributed to a number of things, but it is known for its information technology industry, music scene, University of Texas, entrepreneurial spirit and a destination for young adults.

Jason feels Roanoke is prime and ready for growth and it has many attributes young adults are looking for in a destination city – like outdoors, cost of living, beautiful setting, nice people, etc. He gave us some good ideas and thoughts on how to make this happen. We need ambassadors like Jason who carry the torch for us in other cities he is speaking. This perception from afar can go a long ways in promoting the region to young adults.   

Thanks for your good work Jason. All of you reading, get a copy of his book.

Today on the campus of Virginia Tech, the City of Roanoke and the Department of Business Assistance hosted an event in the classroom of Dr. Chris Neck’s class with 500+ people to discuss the concept and traits of entrepreneurship. Cameron Johnson, 22 year old and 12-time entrepreneur, was better than advertised. His story is so good, Hollywood could not have made it up. Dr. Neck was equally as good with his interactive teaching style. Read more about these two gems in the region – Neck and Johnson.

Many have said there needs to be a central location on the web for young adults in the Roanoke and New River Valleys to obtain information about what is happening in the region, as well as, offering an opportunity for other people to add links to the site of other events, helpful resources, etc.

What would you like to see on such a site?

Cameron Johnson – 22-year-old, 12-time entrepreneur – will be speaking to Dr. Chris Neck’s Management Thoery and Leadership in Practice class on Friday afternoon at McBryde 100 on the campus of Virginia Tech from 2:30 pm to 5pm. Space is limited. Click to register. Area entrepreneurial service providers will also be present to help the 400+ students who want to learn more about how they can start a business locally.

I was recently turned on to this article that suggests some very good commentary that will support Richard Florida and this blogs approach to retaining local talent. It provides three different alternatives to "educational segregation" – throw more state money at education, Florida’s findings about recruiting the creative class to do the economic development for you, and incentives through financial aid.