Our new site includes interactive dashboards for each indicator. Make the most of the data. See How
Economic Vitality measures the quantity and quality of jobs within a region, the relative incomes that its residents earn, the wealth they attain, and economic opportunities for its entrepreneurs.
Innovation measures the extent to which a community and its institutions are generating new ideas and inventions, and the market’s reception of these ideas.
Infrastructure measures the quantity and quality of the investment a region makes in underlying structures, including transportation and broadband internet.
Talent measures who is working today, and how well the region’s talent pipeline is being prepared for the jobs of tomorrow.
Civic Quality measures the affordability of a region, the health and safety of its citizens, and the recreational opportunities that impact its quality of life.
Outcomes measure the growth of the regional economy, the extent to which economic growth is being enjoyed by everyone, and the attractiveness of the region for its current and potential residents.
For the purpose of the Regional Competitiveness Report, the data presented for the Tampa Bay region reflects the eight counties of Citrus, Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, and Sarasota.
The Tampa Bay Partnership is a coalition of regional business and nonprofit leaders, joined by a shared commitment to improving the personal and economic well-being of Tampa Bay residents. Through its foundation, the Partnership conducts objective, data-driven research to identify the region’s greatest challenges and measure our progress toward shared community goals. This work includes the Regional Competitiveness Report, which helps measure our region's performance against other communities nationwide.
Jacksonville is a peer comparison community from the Regional Competitiveness Report (RCR). In the 2023 report, they led the Florida MSAs in 7 of the 9 Florida Talent indicators, including kindergarten readiness (51.62%) and third-grade reading (56.23%). In contrast, only 49.45% of children in Tampa Bay are ready for kindergarten, and our third-grade reading proficiency is 50.47%.
Jacksonville has applied a Results-Based Accountability™ (RBA) community framework to set goals and collaboratively build action plans around data-driven methods. We will highlight several efforts created and championed by the Kids Hope Alliance of Duval County regarding kindergarten readiness and early-education initiatives.
Jacksonville is a top performer in many of the Florida Talent indicators, with leading rates for kindergarten readiness (51.62% of kindergarteners) and third-grade reading (56.23% of third-grade students passed their English Arts FSA with a 3 or better). The community has formed concerted efforts to fund and improve early learning programming by aligning municipal, non-profit, and private providers. These providers work to improve childcare access for families while aiding in the professional development of teachers and improving the quality of existing programs.
The Kids Hope Alliance (KHA) is a funding agent for the city of Jacksonville that also manages the implementation and monitors the outcomes of their funded partners. Last year alone, KHA invested $38.3M in children’s and youth programs and services county-wide. The city of Jacksonville supports them with $35M in annual funding, and the organization obtained an additional $7.15M through grants.
Strategic partnerships with third-party providers and non-profits connected over 21,000 children to a continuum of critical services, including academics, enrichment, nutrition, and mental health.
Among these resources, early learning coaches from The Kids Hope Alliance help transform existing childcare centers into high-quality early learning programs which meet or exceed the Guiding Stars of Duval (GSOD) quality rating and improvement system.
Childcare center owners, directors, and teachers receive technical assistance and training related to leadership, CDA credentialing, quality curriculum, and assessments. Centers learn how to track progress along the state accepted or approved VPK Readiness Rate and the Child Outcomes: Bracken Basic Concept Scale, Test of Preschool Early Literacy, VPK Assessment. To date, over 500 teachers have received over 19,000 instructional coaching sessions. 70% of providers who have completed the training Scored Within the Medium to Very High Range on the CLASS (Classroom Assessment Scoring System) Tool.
Additionally, the Kids Hope Alliance has created resources for parents, including recommendations for books and corresponding activities through the City of Jacksonville Library System. The Little Learners program of the JaxKids Book Club assists in boosting literacy and a love of reading while providing age-appropriate development activities.
As in other communities, childcare and VPK can be cost-prohibitive. Although the bulk of their budget comes from the city, KHA’s grants-driven fiscal model allows them to scale services on an annual basis. However, the organization notes that this only provides supplementary funding in short-term increments (1-3 years). KHA does not benefit from property tax revenues (millage), an approach that bolsters other counties. For context:
State funding in Florida will only cover 4 hours of curriculum a day. KHA addresses this barrier by applying the largest segment of funding to out-of-school programming. Last year, 4,750 children benefited from scholarships.
Innovative funding structures, county-wide collaboration, and addressing the issues from all angles (access, quality, home life) have been instrumental in raising the literacy and kindergarten readiness of the Jacksonville MSA.