The city council of Hamilton, Ohio has unanimously endorsed a plan that will offer a $5,000 “reverse scholarship” to assist with student loan payments for recent college or trade-school graduates willing to move there.
Funding for the “Talent Attraction Program Scholarships” will be provided by the nonprofit Hamilton Community Foundation. City administrators and community members have praised the foundation’s efforts to draw competitive and educated young people to the city’s “urban core” of neighborhoods, including Downtown-Central Business District, Riverview, German Village, Dayton Lane and Rossville.
“We hope it will attract some folks into our community who maybe wouldn’t have come without such a program,” foundation president and CEO John Guidugli said in an announcement this week. “Our hope is to make it more of a vibrant community with folks who are interested in being here and contribute back into the community, as well.”
Hamilton’s financial offering is targeted to individuals who have graduated in the last seven years and who hold degrees in science, technology, engineering, math or the arts. Applicants must have at least $5,000 in student loan debt.
The financial offering from the foundation is the latest incentive-based effort implemented by an increasing number of cities and other localities where leaders hope to revitalize and grow urban centers by attracting young workers. Initiatives such as Hamilton’s have gained popularity in some counties in Kansas, Michigan and New York, for example.
However, some in the education community are hesitant about such financial offers.
“I think such programs can be appealing when the amount is larger,” said Dr. Donna Y. Ford, professor of education and human development at Vanderbilt University. “I don’t think [$5,000] is sufficiently compelling unless the individual was already planning to return, lives close to the city and or is unemployed.”
