6 Distillation Guidebook Co-Lab • 9.18–9.19 2025 The Largest Employers In the late 19th to mid-20th centuries, industrial employers were the primary economic anchors driving the growth of small cities in the Mid Atlantic, Northeast, and Midwest. These included steel and coal production, weapons manufacturing, and textiles, among many others. Following the national decline of these industries, the primary employers in many small cities shifted to meds and eds. These institutions were often the “last ones standing,” rooted in place and far less likely to relocate. They were therefore viewed as stable, mutually invested partners in local recovery and development, though an overreliance can concentrate power and create precarity. In the mid-20th century, there was extreme growth and investment funneled into meds and eds. Universities expanded with increased public investment, federal research dollars, and subsidized higher education to grow the student body and research capacity. Programs such as the GI Bill, along with increased federal funding for research tied to Cold War priorities, including science, medicine, and space exploration, accelerated institutional growth. At the same time, the healthcare sector
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