Graduation Time
Graduation Time
We all know the importance of a college degree. I've said many times that someone with a college degree will make $1 million more over a lifetime than a person with just a high school diploma. Most people now see a college degree as a necessity - not just an added bonus - to finding a good job and living comfortably.
High school graduations are now just days away and college graduations are here. Some high school graduates will be faced with a difficult decision on whether to immediately enter the workforce or to begin pursuing a college degree. Graduates of both high school and college will be entering into the most educated job market this country has ever seen. There's no question a college graduate will have more success finding higher paying jobs than those competing for similar jobs straight out of high school.
Higher education and K-12 education have made great strides over the past few years. One national report card showed improvement in the preparation for, participation in, completion of and benefits from a college education during the past decade.
In Arkansas, the Smart Start and Smart Step initiatives are skills intensive, standards based learning programs that expand and strengthen student success while demanding teacher and administrator accountability. And the results speak for themselves. Thanks in part to these initiatives, the state has improved more than the national average in preparation. In 2005, the information released by the College Board shows the number of students participating in Advanced Placement (AP) Exams in 2005 increased by 108 percent over 2004, representing the largest increase in access to AP curricula any state has achieved in a single year during the 50-year history of the program.
Also, ninth graders in Arkansas are 8 percent more likely to enroll in college within four years, compared to a 3 percent decrease nationwide, studies show. The latest information from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education shows that four-year institutions have seen a 10.6 percent increase in enrollment since the 1999 school year. The 22 two-year colleges have increased by even greater numbers. The total enrollment in 1999 for these schools was 23,526. Those numbers had increased to more than 31,000 in 2004, a 34 percent increase in students looking to get that extra edge on others searching for jobs.
There has also been an increase in students who return for their second year of college. Any college president will tell you that student retention continues to be a major problem. But Arkansas, again differing from national statistics, has seen an increase in its freshmen retention rate, including a 9 percent increase in first-year community college students returning for their second year.
Not only are more students continuing their education after high school, but more are finishing their degrees. During the past decade, more African American students have received certificates relative to the number enrolled, narrowing the performance gap between races in the state. Arkansas' four-year colleges have seen an increase in the total number of minorities. In 2004, more than 30 percent of students were minorities.
As a whole, we're not the cream of the crop across the nation yet, but we are certainly rising to the top. And I think leaders across the state understand that we can't stop emphasizing the continued improvement in these areas.
http://www.arkansas.gov/governor/newsroom/index.php?do:newsDetail=1&news_id=153