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William Vaughan - Economic Developer and Map Doodler
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I've always had an interest in geography and spatial things,” says William Vaughan, a Research Manager of economic development for Prince William County, Virginia, “When I was a kid, I used to build cities in my backyard -- I'm really interested in the shape of cities.” It was Vaughan's interest in cities that probably led him to his current position. “As a research manager of economic development, I take county information from a database and display it in a visual way,” says Vaughan, “I do a lot of demographic analysis and turn the information into bar graphs and pie charts.” Displaying data visually is only one part of Vaughan's job. Vaughan also helps the economic development of the county by working with potential employers and investors. In order for a county to be attractive to a potential customer, Vaughan has to examine the characteristics of the county such as the physical geography, education level, population growth, and available labor force. These characteristics can make Prince William County the perfect place or a costly place. Recently, Vaughan's team demonstrated the attractiveness of a reverse commute to Prince William and its similarity to the same commute to Dulles. “We examined the commute for the employees from each location and estimated travel times,” says Vaughan, “We found that a move to Dulles held no advantage for the company because there was no significant difference between their employees' commute to Dulles and their commute to the county.” To keep the county marketable, Vaughan must be knowledgeable about the county and the changes in it. “Much of what I do is keeping track and identifying the characteristics that I can use to market the county,” says Vaughan, “When I started this job I was identifying the strengths of the county by using census data such as household type, population growth, ethnicity, and average commute length to determine what makes the county attractive to others.” In March of 1999, the county was successful in attracting America Online (AOL) to the county. “AOL's data technology center represents an investment in the county by AOL of over $500 million, which is the largest single private investment ever in Prince William County and the fourth largest ever in the commonwealth of Virginia,” says Vaughan, “This is a substantial affirmation of the methods we employ that use geographic and demographic techniques in the marketing of the county to high-tech businesses.” Vaughan deals with not only the potential customers of the county, but also the people who call the county home. “I give a lot of talks to the public about what we do because, there is a large division on how the county should be developed,” says Vaughan, “It is frustrating and exciting.” It is exciting for me to be able to apply my skills to make a change to move the county forward – to chart the future of the county,” says Vaughan, “The county has 2 interstates going through it and because of that 2 separate counties have developed and now they are blending together.” Surprisingly, geography wasn't Vaughan's first love – music was. Vaughan had a career in music for about 15 years. “ I didn't feel that I was going anywhere and was looking for something else,” says Vaughan. So, while looking for an answer he stumbled upon George Mason University's geography department and Dr. Alice Andrews' office. “I remember her office was a maze of papers and books,” says Vaughan, “So, I sat down with her and she said to me, 'Mr. Vaughan you just have to get organized!' --She really had a lot to do with me becoming a geographer.” After talking with her, something just clicked and I realized that I've always loved maps,” says Vaughan, “When I doodle, I draw street maps out of my mind -- maybe I have an urge to play God.” Vaughan feels that there are a lot of opportunities for geographers in the world and he has some advice for students. Improving your computer skills by learning spreadsheets, ArcInfo, and ArcView. He also encourages students to take electives especially in their freshman year in college such as physical, human, mapping, and computer GIS courses. “It is amazing how much the field has changed,” says Vaughan, “When I was an undergraduate in geography the entire field changed completely because cartography was becoming computerized.” “You either jumped on the bandwagon or you didn't make it,” Vaughan continues, “It's an exciting time in geography,” William Vaughan continues to making his mark on the world as a geographer by showing people the world graphically, by influencing the future of the county, and by shaping cities with his doodles. |