Okay, let’s look at all these facts, right in a nice row, shall we?
First there is this set of facts from a new report from the California Public Policy Institute:
* According to the report, California ranked 43rd among the 50 states in the ratio of bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2006 to high school diplomas awarded just five years earlier.
* Only slightly more than half or 56% of California high school graduates go on to any college the next year, compared to 62% for the nation, or more than 70% for New York and Massachusetts.
* If current trends continue, by 2025 California will have 1 million fewer college graduates than it needs for jobs that require a college degree.
* The key obstacles to college attendance and graduation are costs and a lack of academic preparation.
So-o-o-ooooo what are we doing about the problem?
Allow me to introduce you to Education Fact List Number Two:.
* California is raising college costs.
* Specifically, representatives of the California State Universities announced yesterday that they may raise CSU fees 10 percent, increasing the tuition cost per year to $3,354.
* The University of California Board of Regents is expected to approve a 9.3 percent raise in a matter of days. This would raise the four-year cost of tuition and feels to around $34,000.
* And California is laying off high school and middle school teachers.
************************************************************************************************************
Yes, we have terrible budget problems. And whatever we do, bad cuts are going to be made. But it’s matter of priorities. As the LA Times says in today’s editorial, we cannot start moving backward on education.
We’re already much too close to the back of the class as it is.