Dodd urges prevention, jobs and entertainment to keep young people in Jackson

During the interview, Johnny Dodd said the city must focus on creating entertainment options, improving infrastructure and expanding job opportunities to keep recent graduates from leaving for larger cities.

"If we want to keep our young people here after they graduate ... we're gonna have to get more focused on entertainment," Dodd said. He also pointed to housing, jobs and stronger partnerships between city government and the school system as priorities.

Dodd framed mentoring events as crime-prevention tools: "We got to be more in a preventive mode than wait until something happen," he said, adding that community events and cross-sector cooperation are necessary to address rising crime. He urged local leaders to work across party lines to put city needs first.