Alarmed by a survey showing young adults lacking confidence in state government, Gov. Deval Patrick is preparing to launch a website to communicate more effectively with people between the ages of 25 and 40.
Elizabeth Clay, director of grassroots governance for Patrick, said the still unnamed website would attempt to establish two-way communication between state government and young adults. Clay said Patrick wants to convey to young adults that they are wanted in Massachusetts and also inform them about resources and services available from the state. Clay said the website is likely to feature personal profiles of young adults and offer social networking capabilities.
The idea for the website emerged from a meeting Patrick held with 20 young adults from across the state. Patrick wanted to hear their concerns after reading a survey of young adults in Massachusetts conducted by MassINC, the nonpartisan think tank that publishes CommonWealth magazine. The survey indicated that young people in Massachusetts are surprisingly bullish about their future but lack confidence in state government.
The poll of 801 adults between the ages of 25 and 39 found that only 4 percent were very confident that state and local government could improve the policy area most important to them. The survey also found that nearly 75 percent of those surveyed said it was important for their employer to be socially responsible and nearly 90 percent said their current employer was socially responsible.
Clay made her announcement about the new website at a MassINC forum on the young adult survey Thursday night at the Boston Park Plaza. She said Patrick was alarmed by the poll results indicating young people lack confidence in state government and determined to communicate more effectively with that age group. The poll indicated 22 percent of those surveyed expected to leave Massachusetts over the next five years.