The Chicago Urban League unveiled a seven month study Wednesday stating that black Chicagoans are the “largest source of untapped economic potential” in which the city must invest in order to compete in the global marketplace.

The study was presented at the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank and applauded by a number of leading black citizens.

The “Futures Study,” which was conducted in conjunction with the Global Business Network, a consulting firm, stated that educational achievement and entrepreneurship are necessary to allow Cook County’s black citizens to segue up the economic ladder. The area encompasses the largest black population of any county in the nation with 1.4 million black citizens. Meanwhile, its dropout rate hovers around 50 percent and it has an unemployment rate of 17 percent, according to the study.

“This study also helps develop a road map to create pathways for a community that will dramatically impact the region’s economic prosperity,” said Cheryle R. Jackson, CEO and president of the Chicago Urban League.

The study recommends a seven-point plan that includes an increase in state funding for public schools; partnerships allowing students to transition into growth sectors of the economy; increasing funding to rehabilitate at-risk juveniles; and relying on churches to help sustain business growth.

The average household income for black people in Chicago is approximately $23,000, said David Thigpen, the Chicago Urban League’s vice president of policy and research.

“Chicago can be the black Wall Street,” Jackson said, alluding to the “symbiotic” relationship between the city’s black citizenry and its ability to succeed in an international market that’s increasingly competing with the U.S. By stimulating black-owned businesses, she said, Chicago would be more apt to attract events such as the 2016 Olympics.

But for that to happen, “it’s up to Springfield to provide the additional funding that Chicago public schools need,” said Bennett J. Johnson III, director of the city’s office of budget and management.

A Nielsen Co. opinion poll of approximately 500 black Chicagoans in business, academics, government and community leadership underpinned the findings of the study. Fifty-six percent of the respondents said a better quality of education is the most important factor in economic success, while 68 percent said a stable home was the most important factor in achieving academic success.

“I’m not surprised that in an African American community people focus on education as the ticket to success,” said Ald. Toni Preckwinkle (4th), who taught high school history for a decade before she shifted to politics. “We have to figure out how to transfer that recognition into a performance reality — and we’re a long way from that, particularly for African American males.”

“We’ve got to get them into high school and get them through high school and help them to graduate because they are lost if they don’t have a high school diploma,” she said.

Chicago Public School Board President Rufus Williams said the board is making dramatic shifts in educational policy in order to stimulate graduation rates and student achievement. “We’re doing some pretty draconian things,” he said, “We’re changing the environment by adding in more programs, adding in more Saturday schools and really driving the rigor so that the children are better prepared.”

He added that most challenging task ahead is changing culture to emphasize education as being the most important factor in success.

The study was enhanced with research by the Brookings Institution, a national think thank based in Washington, D.C. Amy Liu, the deputy director of the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program and a Northwestern University graduate, briefed the crowd on the institution’s “Blueprint for American Prosperity.” She emphasized that Chicago’s workforce will be changing dramatically in he next 25 years with 51 million people expected to retire.

According to the Brookings Institution, blacks and Hispanic workers will grow from 25 percent of the working-age population to 40 percent by 2025.

“We are very excited about taking this idea and making it concrete,” Liu said, adding that Brookings will continue to work with the Chicago Urban League to figure out what the right federal role would be to advance education, workforce development and entrepreneurship in Chicago.