This Cool School

The economic news of the day is decidedly poor.  Unemployment has risen above 9%, wage gaps continue to increase, median income has dropped by over 10%, and average costs of living continue to soar.  In the past the answer to these problems always seemed to lie within the “hallowed halls” of a higher education.  Those with college degrees, we were told, will earn hundreds of thousands more in their lifetimes.  But with tuition costs rising steeply, employment rates falling sharply, and consumer debt on the rise many are now asking if the age old adage still rings true.  Is college really worth the expense?  According to new research by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, just released this month, the answer is yes – and perhaps more now than ever.

Graduation in the Spotlight

According to the study, led by Anthony Carnevale, Stephen Rose, and Ban Cheah, there is a direct correlation between years of completed education and lifetime earnings.  “On average, there are significant differences in how much is earned based on how much education is completed, ranging from high school dropout to doctoral graduates.”

Data available in 1999 showed that employees holding a bachelor’s degree earned 75% more over a lifetime than employees with only a high school diploma.  Carnevale, Rose, and Cheah were able to extrapolate this data and combine it with new research and statistical analysis to show that now the earnings difference between those holding a bachelor’s degree and those with only a high school diploma has risen to 84%.  In some fields this translates to over one million dollars more over a 35 year work-span.

A Degree Is More Important Now Than Ever

This data shows that not only is a college degree worth the expense, but it is becoming more valuable over time.  Speaking to news reporters at a press release Carnavale stated, “lifetime returns for a post-secondary education are, in fact, increasing and differences in attainment count for very substantial differences in lifetime earnings. For example, a worker with a master’s degree can expect to earn about $400,000 more than a worker with a bachelor’s degree. And a person with a doctoral degree can expect to earn nearly $600,000 more than a master’s degree holder, over a lifetime.” And in some highly technical fields these differences top the seven digit category.

However, even with these statistics, many still wonder.  True, they say someone with a college degree will earn more money, but only if she can actually find a job.  And if she does find a job she has to stay there long enough to move up through the pay scale rankings.  Even then, will the lower salaries offered today exceed the debt one must acquire in order to graduate with an advanced degree?  These are valid questions.  Education debt is at its highest levels ever, and so are overall costs of living.

College Definitely Makes A Difference

The study by Georgetown University also addressed these issues.  “Carnevale emphasized that the substantial difference in earnings between a worker with a high school diploma and one with a bachelor’s degree would more than cover the cost of attending college.”  While it is true that education costs have risen steeply, so have opportunities for financial aid, scholarships, and grants.  Many companies will now offer to offset all or part of the cost of obtaining a higher degree if the student agrees to remain an employee for a certain number of years.  This way both parties benefit.  An employee is guaranteed a job, a higher education, and a higher pay rate, while the employer is guaranteed a high quality employee with a high level education.

In fact, the study showed that not only can the costs of a higher education be more than covered by future wages, but educational costs can actually be lower now than ever before if students take advantage of the many opportunities for financial aid available through both government and private organizations.

The Future Calls For A More Educated Work Force

Researcher’s affiliated with the study made the statement that “America’s future depends . . . on having college-education workers.”  For this reason it is more important now than ever to increase the number of students attending and graduating from institutions of higher learning.

The Georgetown University researchers paired their research with additional studies underwritten by the Lumina and Gates foundations.  These two foundations have been at the forefront of the fight to improve statistics showing how many students graduate compared to how many students enroll. Right now the U.S. falls well behind the rest of the world when it comes to college completion rates.  The goal of the Lumina and Gates foundations is to have “60 percent of Americans holding a high-quality college degree or credential by 2025.  That would be an almost 50 percent jump from the current percentage, which places the U.S. tied for 10^th in the world in post secondary education.”

Colleges Need to Adapt

If this goal is to be achieved then colleges will have to “move with the times”.  Colleges,” according to Merisotis, “cannot continue to conduct business as usual, with [an] emphasis on seat time (the amount of time spent in a classroom to reach a credit).  Colleges must be more flexible, more student-centered, accountable and accessible,” he said.

Colleges seem to be listening.  More and more universities offer a range of scheduling options, varying from traditional classroom experiences to self-taught online courses, to webinar seminars.  Colleges and universities throughout the United States are becoming more and more accessible to more and more students with non-traditional learning needs.

It seems clear that this and other studies – along with daily examples prove that a college education is most certainly worth the cost.

Think for yourself. That’s the message a group of students are sending during Peace Week at three Columbus high schools.

At Linden-McKinley, East and South high schools, a nonprofit group called Strategies Against Violence Everywhere has brought a week’s worth of themes to spread an anti-violence message. Among them: “No Saggin/No Cussin Day,” “I Got Love For U Day” and “Random Acts of Kindness Day.”

We’d love to tell you how Peace Week is going, but the district said no media is allowed in the schools during the events. The presence of a reporter – especially the week before a holiday break – would be far too distracting, the district said.

Here’s what we can tell you about Peace Week, from the Columbus-based nonprofit group that sponsors it. Peace Week is about more than just promoting violence prevention, said Mario Martin with SAVE, who works with a group of 50 or so students at Linden-McKinley. It’s about reminding students that they don’t have to follow the crowd when the crowd is making bad choices.

“You have to look at other dynamics and issues that lead up to violence,” Martin said. “Following trends and the culture, like saggy pants or talking a certain way. We have to challenge those things.”

SAVE has been around since 1994 and working in Columbus City Schools to prevent violence and empower youth.

The provost of New York City’s Lehman College has been nominated for the presidency of Southern Connecticut State University.

Mary Papazian was selected Thursday morning by the Connecticut State University System’s board of trustees, whose recommendation now goes to the state Board of Regents for Higher Education.

That board was scheduled to meet Thursday afternoon to vote on Papazian’s appointment.

In addition to provost, Papazian also is Lehman’s vice president of academic affairs.

If confirmed as president, Papazian would take over Southern Connecticut State Interim President Stanley Battle, who was the other finalist in the search that drew 73 applicants.

Papazian held administrative and teaching positions at Montclair State University in New Jersey and Oakland University in Rochester, Mich., before joining Bronx-based Lehman College in 2007.

The latest Quinnipiac poll shows a majority of Pennsylvania voters support the removal of Penn State University President Graham Spanier and head coach Joe Paterno.

A majority of Pennsylvania voters support the Penn State trustees’ decision to fire football coach Joe Paterno and accept the resignation of university president Graham Spanier in the wake of the child sexual abuse scandal engulfing the university, according to a statewide poll released by Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

But it’s clear that they look far more favorably on Spanier’s ouster than on JoePa’s.

The poll results show voters supported Spanier’s removal by a 74 to 13 percent margin, while Paterno’s firing carried a slim 52 to 43 percent majority. The poll conducted between Nov. 28 and Dec. 5 has a plus or minus 2.6 percent margin of error.

In dicing up the poll’s findings on Paterno, it showed voters with a college degree supported Paterno’s firing 63 to 32 percent while those without degrees were evenly split, 47 to 47 percent. Looking at the results through a different filter, white Protestants opposed the firing 49 to 44 percent while white Catholics supported it 52-45 percent.

No such divisions were apparent in the results regarding Spanier’s firing.

“University presidents come and go, but Joe Paterno …,” said Tim Malloy, the polling institute’s assistant director, in a news release about the poll findings, in commenting on the findings.

The poll also asked voters about whether football has too much influence at Penn State. Sixty five percent of respondents said yes, while 25 percent said it had the right amount of influence and 4 percent said it did not have enough influence.

“Clearly the scandal has shaken the university to its foundation and may forever reshape its football program despite the clear indication from our polling that Pennsylvanians don’t want the players or team penalized,” Malloy said.

He was referring to poll findings that show 65 percent of voters thought it would be a bad idea to not accept a bowl big while 18 percent said it would be a good idea to rebuff the offer that Penn State received from the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas.

Enlarge Jerry Sandusky is escorted from a car to his College Township home after spending the night in the Centre County jail. Sandusky was charged Wednesday with additional counts of sexual abuse of minors. JOE HERMITT, The Patriot-News Jerry Sandusky released from the Centre County Jail gallery (7 photos) As for Gov. Tom Corbett’s handling of the child sex abuse case built around allegations from 10 victims about sexual assaults involving former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, the poll found voters were split 38 to 36 percent in their approval.

Overall, however, Corbett’s approval rating saw a slight uptick from the last poll conducted earlier last month. Voters give him a 47 to 34 percent job approval rating, compared to 46 to 31 percent on Nov. 10.

“The Penn State scandal is the biggest story in the Keystone State but it apparently has not affected how voters view their first-year governor,” Malloy said.