ARC’s Research Division Chief Mike Alexander was the featured guest speaker at the Council’s Dekalb Advisory Committee on June 5, 2014. Among many topics, Mike discussed in detail demographics of Dekalb County and how these demographics are projected to change in the future. For one, Dekalb is expected to experience some future growth in racial diversity; ARC anticipates Dekalb’s Hispanic community to grow from its current 12% to 16% in 2025, and to 24% in 2040. On the other hand, the number of African American residents in Dekalb County is expected to shrink from 53% today to 45% in 2040.
Mike also discussed employment changes in various Georgia counties since 2000, and purposely pointed out that Dekalb County has experienced one of the highest job losses when compared to other counties in the state. Since 2000, Dekalb has lost close to 62,000 jobs, where counties such as Cobb have actually gained 11,000 jobs since then. Consistent with this statistic, Mike provided ARC survey data that illustrates what Dekalb residents see as the biggest issues they currently face: the economy, crime, and public education. In spite of some of these challenges, Mike highlighted Dekalb’s potential for growth in the health care sector and professional, scientific, and technical services over the next 25 years.
To access the full presentation, click HERE.