If you were to walk around downtown Rockford, you can just tell it's a city on the rise.

Now it's starting to get some national recognition from the Milken Institute in their brand new report highlighting "Best-Performing Cities 2020: Where America's Job Are Created and Sustained."

Since the last report, Rockford has jumped 40 spots, ranked 144 in the US in the "large metro" category.

Here's how Milken Institute ranked each city:

Metros are ranked on their performance, while indicators help identify the drivers behind their success or failure.

The methodology is HERE.

Rockford's 40 spot rise in the rankings is one of the largest of any city ranked in the survey.

Winston-Salem in North Carolina had the biggest jump year-to-year going from 160 to 82.

If Rockford continues to grow, next year's report may just feature the Forest City in the top 100 nationwide.

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Sweet Lenny is the brand manager of 97ZOK, Q98.5, and Operations Manager for Townsquare Media Rockford. Catch him afternoons 3 to 7 on 97ZOK. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram and like his page on Facebook.

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