Cornell has released "Upstate New York in Profile," a chart book outlining key demographic, economic and social trends -- including custom opinion poll data. The chart book was designed to provide valuable information for local officials, economic developers, entrepreneurs, school and health care administrators and public policy makers in the region.

Produced by Cornell's Community and Regional Development Institute (CaRDI), the chart book is available free online at http://www.cardi.cornell.edu. It will also serve as a resource for conference participants at the inaugural "State of Upstate New York Conference: Resiliency, Partnerships and Innovations," in downtown Syracuse, June 8 and 9. The conference is open to the public.

"This chart book will provide useful data, survey information and links to additional resources so that stakeholders in the future of upstate New York can be on the same page with recent trends as they begin their discussions about how to best move forward with the various challenges and opportunities facing the upstate region," said Robin Blakely-Armitage, lead author of the chart book and CaRDI senior extension associate.

"The Upstate New York in Profile" includes data collated from the U.S. Census and the American Community Survey, as well as a survey of 600 upstate New York households in January 2011. Here are some highlights.

Population

While the population of New York has grown 7.7 percent in the past two decades, its growth has been sluggish compared with other states. Most of the growth has been in large cities; smaller cities have lost residents and rural areas have remained stable. If not for an influx of new residents from abroad, the state population would have declined.

Diversity

New York state is ethnically and racially diverse, but upstate New York is less so. In 2009, upstate was 84.7 percent white, compared to 60 percent statewide, and while 21.3 percent of the state population was born in a foreign country, only 5.8 percent of upstate New Yorkers were. The Hispanic population is growing the largest, with 16.8 percent statewide, but only 4.9 percent in upstate New York. Rural areas of upstate New York are actually more diverse than the area's small cities, the report found.

Employment

Manufacturing, once the largest employment sector in upstate New York, representing 14.5 percent of the labor force in 2000, declined to 10.2 percent in 2009. Health care and social assistance are now the major employment sectors in New York. Educational services and retail trade remained steady, and public administration had a strong presence in rural areas. The majority of survey respondents identified local job creation as their top priority for regional economic development. The workforce is increasingly well educated, with 13 percent of residents lacking a high school diploma, compared with 25 percent in 1990.

Education

Enrollment in public elementary and secondary schools has decreased in the past decade -- 3.5 percent statewide, and 8 percent in upstate New York between 1997 and 2007 -- yet the costs to run the schools remain high. This has resulted in spending that has gone from averages of $10,000-15,000 per pupil in 2000, to $20,000-25,000 per pupil in 2008, with some counties spending as much as $50,000 per pupil. Teacher salaries have only increased slightly, yet health care expenditures have tripled from 1993 to 2008, and transportation costs have risen 40 percent.

Environment

State and local governments should remain committed to environmental protection, even in tough economic times, according to 90 percent of those surveyed. Almost two-thirds (65 percent) believed the potential risks to water quality from natural gas drilling outweighed the revenue benefits, with those in rural areas showing the most opposition.

Taxes

Taxes were the primary concern of most respondents. Almost 75 percent favored property tax caps, but this support dropped to 49 percent if the result was cuts to their local school budgets. About half said they would support merging their local school with a neighboring one if it resulted in a decrease in property taxes.