In 2015, following eight years of service on the Metropolitan Council, Megan Barry was elected the first woman mayor of Metro Nashville on a platform of being a pro-business progressive who would keep Nashville moving forward. In 2016, Barry worked with labor organizations and the business community to create the Nashville Construction Readiness Partnership, a pre-apprenticeship program and employee database that will connect local workers to training for good-paying construction jobs during Nashville’s building boom, while helping developers find local workers for their job sites.  To connect youth to opportunity and hope, Barry created Opportunity NOW, a youth employment initiative with a goal of putting 10,000 of Nashville’s youth aged 14-24 into paid, meaningful jobs or internships in the public and private sectors. Barry has also sought to address the lack of affordable housing by investing $10 million per year for low-income housing opportunities and creating the Housing Incentive Pilot Program (HIPP), which is designed to encourage mixed-income rental housing options throughout the community. In addition to these initiatives, Mayor Barry has remained focus on investing in Nashville’s public schools, building better transit infrastructure, and promoting public safety in a way that improves the quality of life for all.