PolicyLink and PERE
98
An Equity Profile of Orange County
Ten (plus one) steps to an equitable Orange County
Implications
10+1. Develop a regional equity strategy,
indicators of progress, and a data system for
measuring progress.
Looking forward, Orange County is poised to
develop a county-wide strategy that centers racial
and economic equity practices. The region's
relative prosperity means that it can pursue a bold
strategy that addresses inequities in order to set
the stage for decades of equitable growth.
Developing an ongoing system for tracking
progress over time can help to keep equity as a
county-wide goal. What is not measured will not
be achieved—yet measurement and data alone
are not enough. Now is the time for bold
leadership and first steps to ensure Orange
County is on a path to prosperity, inclusion, and
improved outcomes for all.
10. Partner with peer regions pursuing similar
goals.
Orange County is not alone in facing the
imperatives of equity and growth. Regions across
the country are facing the challenge of balancing
economic prosperity with inclusion—and
overcoming political polarization and social
divides in doing so. For example, in Oklahoma
City, a diverse regional collaboration—with
leadership from Republican mayors and a
conservative Chamber of Commerce—committed
to turn around the region's trajectory of economic
decline in the 1980s and early 1990s. They did so
by gaining consensus on the importance of taxes
in supporting public expenditures on quality of
life and educational improvements. Peer
exchanges with other regions could be helpful in
educating and inspiring Orange County leaders.
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