Dr. Neil Hair

Just finished reading a great article from the D&C on the areas universities and economic growth. Several things surprised me: the sheer numbers of the UofR in terms of employment for one - 12,701 people! Ah wait till we see RIT I thought… think again, 2,725 full time employees. Your dad clearly appears to be bigger than mine I thought. Well it's all those medical students and nurses isnt it? Anyways, the article does a good job of highlighting the importance of technology to the region and the RIT incubator which I am proudly associated with through my good friend Dr Demartino. The D&C continues to worry about Rochesters future, and as Ive written before I think were in good shape for things to come provided we continue to brand ourselves and reposition as a silicon valley of the East. Having many good universities in the area helps of course, students bring with them a great deal of money which provides the local economy with investment in return for a good education. A fair deal in my eyes. I regularly go back to my old universities in Cardiff, Sheffield and Cranfield (although the last ones a little tough as it's on the site of an old Royal Air Force base and sheep out number people a good 5 to 1) regularly staying over night and regularly eating out. What we need now though are exciting jobs for our grads so they want to stay and build their careers here with us. Rochester may well be a great place to raise a family, but graduating students may want a little more than that.