I am pleased to announce that the University of Louisville has made it possible for me to
present again this year a chemistry show, It’s Not Your Grandparents Job Market, to
several Louisville area middle and high schools, starting in the fall of 2014. I had the
good fortune to be a tour speaker for the American Chemical Society for some twenty
years and have spoken at many area schools, since my first show was presented in the
gym of Valley High School in 1965. Over the years I have presented the show to over
80,000 people. This past academic year I presented the talk at several area schools, and
am pleased to say the chemical demonstrations are as interesting to students today as the
were 49 years ago. However, the important thing is what I have to say to them, while I
have their attention, because it could change their lives. I don’t want to be overly
dramatic, but I will share some information with them about how the global market place
has changed in the past several years and how those changes have altered the job market.
Yes, even the local job market. I will use information from Tom Friedman’s book The
World Is Flat, in an effort to help them understand they had better make the most of their
educational opportunity to get prepared for the international job competition they will
face when they enter the job market. I will also encourage them to read Sean Covey’s
book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens and will cite James Martin’s book The
Meaning of the 21st Century.
We want our young people to be able to compete in the global market place and to
understand that the competition for good jobs will be coming at them from all directions.
That is what the 55,000 Degrees program is all about. By 2020 the City of Louisville’s
workforce, to be competitive in that global market place, must improve its educational
attainment by adding 40,000 bachelor’s degrees and 15,000 associate degrees. That is the
message I will be attempting to bring to the students to whom I will be speaking.
I should add that in October, I will reach the grand old age of 83. While that’s hardly a
plus when you are promoting yourself as a speaker for young people, it does mean I have
personally observed many of the changes in the job market and the global economy, and
perhaps that gives me some credibility. More important is the fact that I have spent most
of my life teaching young people.
My presentation takes about fifty minutes and involves 10 to 12 chemical
demonstrations. I will also have some handouts for the students that will reinforce the
message I am bringing to them. The talk works best with no more than 200 students. I
can’t assure you I will motivate the students to consider postsecondary education, but that
is my goal. And I don’t mean just college, but skill development in construction, sales,
management, manufacturing, etc. that will make them valuable employees. However, I
believe they will be better informed about what they will be facing when they enter the
job market, because of what I will share with them. If you would like me to make this
presentation at your school in the fall, please contact me at 599-4472 (cell) or at
thcraw01@louisville.edu. There are a limited number of presentations I can make, and I
look forward to visiting your school.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Thomas H. Crawford
Professor of Chemistry, Emeritus
Department of Chemistry
Office of Community Engagement
University of Louisville
Louisville, KY 40192