As a resident of Rochester for the last 3 years post-grad, the wasted human talent here is staggering. There are engineers from Kodak that were bought out of th

As a resident of Rochester for the last 3 years post-grad, the wasted human talent here is staggering. There are engineers from Kodak that were bought out of their pensions who (anecdotally of course) get passed over for adjunct positions at RIT, because they either don't have the degree or RIT prefers younger adjuncts. Many haven't moved away because of the sense of family among former co-workers, but are whiling away their early retirement. The two major research universities are propping up the city's advancement opportunities, but doing so with tuition increases and recruitment of full-price paying foreign students, which makes the place more vibrant, but has also alienated many. The largest employer in town now is the University of Rochester Medical Center, which provides many of the middle income and higher income jobs but is also making a habit of buying up 'distressed' hospitals. The collapse of Kodak and exodus of money and talent has cratered the city public school system, which has a 47.5% on-time graduation rate. The only shining spot in terms of education is an Arts school, with great links to the still world-class Eastman School of Music. Rochester itself is also a great example of 'white flight' in the post-Kodak era, though it began long before that.