Gap in college success a concernReport underlines need to help more S.C. blacks graduate By Diane Knich (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Report underlines need to help more S.C. blacks graduate South Carolina college officials say schools must do more to help students, especially blacks, graduate from high school and college if they want to increase the state's percentage of adults who hold college degrees. The number of black students is expected to increase by 2025 because the black population in the state is increasing faster than the white one. The academic gap between black and white students is "getting larger, not narrowing," said Donald Burkard, the College of Charleston's associate vice president for enrollment planning. Graduation and retention rates "are an issue for us. We're intensely aware of it," said Cathy Almquist, director of institutional research at Trident Technical College. According to a new report, "Adding it Up: State Challenges for Increasing College Access and Success," the United States has fallen to 10th among industrialized nations in the percentage of 25- to 34-year-olds with an associate's degree or higher. And it's one of the only nations where older adults are more educated than younger ones. The report says that despite South Carolina's high school graduation rate — the state has dropped to worst in the nation — it's among the best in the percentage of recent high school graduates going on to college. But the problems occur once they get there. The state's rate for completion of associate's and bachelor's degrees is about average, said Travis Reindl, program director at Jobs for the Future, one of the groups that supported the report. But, he added, "average is a good piece behind the best-performing states." The report, released late last week, was prepared by the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems and supported by the Lumina Foundation for Education and Jobs for the Future. Reindl said that for South Carolina, like several other states in the Southeast, the biggest challenge is probably helping more black students graduate from high school and college as that population increases. Both Burkard and Almquist said their institutions are working on the problem. Burkard said the college "has to find ways with limited resources to do our part." It has recently launched several scholarship and support programs, he said, as well as a bridge program to help students more easily transfer from Trident Technical College. Whitney Gibbs,18, is a 2007 graduate of Stratford High School and a freshman at the College of Charleston this year. Gibbs was selected to be part of the Avery Scholar program, which gives high-achieving students who are low-income, minorities or among the first generation in their families to attend college a $3,000 scholarship and networking opportunities that will help them form bonds at the college. Gibbs, a black student who is among the first generation in her family to attend college, said the scholarship is helpful and the lectures and activities are "opening my eyes and diversifying my life experiences." She attributes her success to her mother, who told her about all the opportunities available and pushed her to succeed. Burkard said it's extremely important for low-income, minority and first-generation students to graduate once they begin college. They, like many students, often must borrow money to attend school, he said. "If they don't complete it, they often just sit with debt." At Trident Technical College, officials are also aware of the need to improve graduation rates, Almquist said. The school is now part of a Lumina Foundation program, which is being paid for by the Palmetto Institute, that will examine problems with retention and offer strategies to help students complete programs. Their new program, which is called Achieving the Dream, will help the college pinpoint the places and times students have the most difficulty. "At community colleges, so many factors play into success," she said. Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com. |
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Comments
This article has 36 comment(s)
Posted by poorboy on November 27, 2007 at 6:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)
And why does everyone have to go to college? I think we force all kids into college when some don't belong there, no matter their skin color. Some kids belong in trade schools or employee sponsored job specific training. We have kids graduate from colleges with worthless degrees just to say they have a degree. I hired a person recently with a degree from Clemson and you should see how un-prepared he is for the real world.
Posted by ericwberg on November 27, 2007 at 6:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Why allow hi-school students to drop out. Let the school district keep them until they graduate; vocational-ed ok too. I repeated a grade and stayed in school for 20 yrs, and it worked for me.
Posted by capnphil on November 27, 2007 at 7:18 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The College of Charleston Master of Arts Teaching program told me in the Child Development Course, children learn 80% of all they will ever learn in their first 5 years. Take a guess why many never graduate high school, let alone college?! No child left behind? They are BEHIND from the very beginning. The ones who WANT TO GO, WILL GO. Perseverence wins out, slow and steady wins out, pride and desire wins out.
Posted by capnphil on November 27, 2007 at 7:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
AND from another of TODAY'S NEWSPAPER STORIES:
When he was younger, Suter said a doctor told his parents that he would never graduate from high school. But he did so, then graduated from West Virginia's West Liberty State College and received his master's degree from the University of South Carolina.
The doctor's prediction taught him to never give up, Suter said. It's a lesson he tries to instill in his students, and one that he hopes is evident as he attempts to beat the odds again.
"That conversation is always in the back of my mind when I face another challenge."
Perseverence, slow and steady, pride and desire will win out.
Reach Mindy B. Hagen at mhagen@postandcourier
Posted by ImplantedYankee on November 27, 2007 at 7:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The fastest way to improve this problem is to stop paying people to have kids that have no business doing so.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 7:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Check this out:
http://www.all4ed.org/files/archive/publ...
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 8:02 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Tripsa: That movie is HILARIOUS. But as you said, that is where we are headed, and it's sad.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 8:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I completely agree with poorboy. College isn't for everyone. You can join the military and they pay for your schooling, or you can head to a trade school. Some people choose to go to Trident and get a two year degree or certificate.
I've noticed that a fair amount of employers would rather have an employee with relevant experience than a degree. Just because you have a piece of paper doesn't mean you can perform the job in the real world.
Posted by majorjohnson on November 27, 2007 at 8:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Actually for black women the rates are pretty good. It's the black males who are missing. Black females earn over 60% of the masters degrees awarded to blacks and are the overwhelming majority at black colleges. It's actually becoming a bit of a problem, because women with a masters aren't often looking for a guy who failed high school and has never held anything but a position as a fry cook or drug dealer. The women increasingly get it and are raising themselves up the ladder, but the men are standing on the corner hip-hopping and trying to look cool. It's obviously doable, it's just that too many don't want to do it.
Posted by whatelseisthere on November 27, 2007 at 8:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This is silly. When are we going to stop throwing money at this family problem? Schools cannot solve family problems, nor should they. I only want the schools to teach the core subjects and offer some extra curricular activities like sports, art and music. Otherwise, stay the heck out of my life. Education should go back to being a priviledge, not a right....then maybe people would appreciate it more.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 8:56 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Here is a chart from 2005 breaking down the U.S populatino by race. http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762156.h...
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 8:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
population not populatino.
Posted by robertrettab on November 27, 2007 at 9:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
eyfigueroa - Thank You! You just made my morning!
Posted by glevans on November 27, 2007 at 9:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I grew up in the Charleston area and I remember that when a black child made good grades, they got teased by all of their black friends about trying to be white? I never really could figure out what making good grades had to do with being white? Later I learned that there is a thing called "crab bucket syndrome". You know one crab tries to get out of the bucket and the others pull it back in while they are trying to get out too? I don't think that things are ever going to get any better in education if we do not stop counting along racial lines.
My parents never graduated from high school but managed to make a good life for us. They encouraged us to finish high school which we all did. But we never qualified for any financial aid so I didn't go to college until I was in my 40's and of course I still had to pay for it out of pocket because by that time, my husband and I were middle class. That also means that neither of our children qualified for financial aid so they too are struggling to pay for college. The middle class seems to foot the bill for everything in America and not get anything back.
But back to education...you cannot force a student to learn, they have to WANT to learn and be encouraged to learn by their parents, family and friends. And I also agree that not everyone is college material. I don't understand the push for everyone to be college educated. I have friends that never went to college that are making way more money then I am and they are perfectly happy.
Posted by ImplantedYankee on November 27, 2007 at 9:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The real issue with scholarship funds isn't that there aren't white analogs to the minority ones, but rather that minority ones exist in the first place. What ever happened to the notion of judging "not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character"? Making white ones isn't the answer. The answer is to remove racial bias from all scholarships, which should be merit based. For that matter, the fact that we are judging performance along racial lines to begin with, rather than by absolute metrics just shows that nothing has changed.
Why is lottery money being spent on college scholarships and reducing college tuitions instead of public schools? College-bound students are already way ahead of the curve in this state. I'd rather see that money used to improve graduation rates, SAT scores, etc, in our ailing public schools.
As I said before, however, a lot of this "extra" help wouldn't be necessary were it not for so many children-for-checks being dumped into the system.
Posted by greyrider on November 27, 2007 at 9:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Sounds to me like we should get 18 year old Whitney Gibbs to talk to some of the black adult leadership. They could learn a lot from her.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 9:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
You know what my favorite part of Christmas is, oops I mean The Holidays? The old school Rudolph, Frosty, and Santa movies. Come on, you know which ones I'm talking about. I love the Abominable Snowman from Rudolph. Ooh Ooh, and the Island of Misfit Toys. Does anyone know where I can buy new stuffed animals of these guys? My two year old LOVES these movies, too. CVS used to carry them years ago, but now all they have are the small musical ones.
Posted by Cid95 on November 27, 2007 at 9:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Anybody should be able to give whatever scholarship money he/she wants to anyone.
HOWEVER - public funds should only go to merit-based scholarships.
We need color-blind equality in the US. Race based metrics are, by definition, racist.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 9:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Tripsa: Oh my gosh, I read it and was like "Oh crap, I hope no one thinks I did that on purpose." LOL. I didn't by the way!!
Posted by miki on November 27, 2007 at 10:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I think some people are confusing private v. public funded "scholarships" (get it? SCHOLARships? It's supposed to be about scholarship, not handing out to people who don't want or try to achieve something.). It's fine for privately funded scholarships to go to whomever the funders want to sponsor. It's when they start getting MY tax money to fund it there is a problem. And there shouldn't be ANY publicly funded scholarships based on race, gender, religion, etc.
I was a POOR WHITE GIRL growing up (still white, still a girl, just no longer poor) but I worked to get a good education and positive life experiences despite my financial status. Now I hold 2 degrees, am well-employed, own my own home. However, I'm still paying for my own education. Anyone want to start a fund for me? Didn't think so.
Posted by suec on November 27, 2007 at 10:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)
True true about not everyone needing college. A lot of grads think that when they graduate with a 4 year degree, everything should just be given to them. They think they shouldn't have to work hard becuse they have a degree.
Hard work, honesty, perseverence and reliability are the keys to success.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 10:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I think the P&C has a "racial disparity" quota that has to be met monthly. I mean, how many of these racial issues have been printed this month. I know that it IS a problem, but some of the articles really don't supply much information. Why write about something you have limited to no info on? I'm not saying this is one of those poorly written articles. There are some facts in this one.
My question is, how lax does our education system have to be before there are NO problems, with any race, graduating high school? Soon, it's going to be if you can sign your name in cursive, you graduate. That will be the exit exam. Oh, and you also have to write your full birthdate.
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 10:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Being a aminority doesn't mean you are born doomed to fail educationally. Why do people think that all blacks have a hard time in school. Have we monitored black children's grades in school and standardized testing?? (Do you know that A LOT of kids taking standardized tests either don't check the ethnicity box, or just check one that they aren't just to be funny.)Show me the numbers that state it is due to academic hardships and learining disabilities. Show me it isn't laziness or lack of attendance. Kids, of any color, shouldn't be handed a college education. What do you expect the kids that struggled in high school to do when they reach a college they clearly aren't prepared for?? What will the college drop-out rate look like when these kids find it too hard for them to handle? Yes, make those kids feel like idiots for not being able to keep up.
Now, there are a lot of kids, of all colors, that ARE prepared for college and still fail. If we allow more and more leniency in college acceptance, how far will we have to dumb down those schools to accomodate the students we pushed through???
Posted by sheeple on November 27, 2007 at 10:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)
When did higher education become something that people of average abilities feel they are entitled to get without earning it for it themselves? It's nice that people with private means like to help talented individuals further their education, but why do people think that EVERYONE should get a higher education paid for by someone else, even if they're not qualified?
Posted by Hey_U_Guys on November 27, 2007 at 10:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Applicant: "I'm not qualified to be a brain surgeon, but my mom really wants me to be. Can I have a job?"
Hospital Admin: "You know, looking over your transcripts I see that you didn't really do very well in school, but we do need 2 more (pick one) Native Americans, Blacks, Whites, Asians, on our payroll. YOU GOT THE JOB. Have any friends that need one???"
Posted by afternoondelight on November 27, 2007 at 11:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)
When an black college graduate from a prominent black university states that
"he gradiated with a degree in "bidness adminiscration
you have to question the validity of that degree.
Talk about gaps.
Posted by greyrider on November 27, 2007 at 12:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
In the years following the end of slavery, race-based scholarships made sense for a few decades. I don't think anybody will argue that. But let's face it, those days are gone. The racists in the white community today still exist, but they are in the minority now (no pun intended). Telling Black kids today that they NEED these type scholarships sends the wrong message. It kills their hope if they don't get one. There are few things sadder than a 19 or 20 year old kid who has already given up on life.
Posted by misfit on November 27, 2007 at 12:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Why does everyone need a four year degree? If I had it to do over, I would get a two year degree. It has been said for a couple of decades now that most people work in several different fields during their lifetime. I would be more comfortable retraining every 10 years, if I hadn't tortured myself and paid tens of thousands for a four year degree.
A four year degree makes sense for the top 10% or so. They can be the lawyers, doctors, and engineers. Everyone else should train for two years in something they like, and retrain when the demand wanes.
Most four year degrees do not boost your income, unless your uncle owns a good sized company. I know the numbers they come out with showing the difference made over a lifetime, but consider that those numbers are skewed by the engineers and doctors and nephews of business owners. If you are going to college for a degree that is not a "sure thing", like medicine or engineering, then you should switch to TTC and get a much cheaper degree in air conditioning, autocad, nursing, or electrician.
Posted by mac0cm4 on November 27, 2007 at 12:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"is there such thing as reverse racism? yes"
It's racism no matter who it's against. There's no reverse, there's no forward. Either way, it's racism. Think about it.
Posted by Just_Me_2 on November 27, 2007 at 1:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Wow, I see people have a lot of free time to write novels on here. (Just scanning through the page. I'll be back to read it all later tonight)
Posted by theronce on November 27, 2007 at 1:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Far too many young people are led to beleive that college is the only way to success and that everyone should go to college. Most public education curricula favor that direction (4 years of English Lit., history, etc.) while neglecting more practical areas of education. Why, even to cook, do you need a college education? Compare the number of enrolling Freshmen to the number of graduates in any college. Too many go to college who may be better suited somewhere else.
Posted by datadiva on November 27, 2007 at 7:20 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"ooh ooh, pick me pick me"
I'm probably the one you were thinking of w/ the one white parent...LOL
I agree with what someone said above about the racially charged article quota... bleh! This is what fuels racism here, these types of pointless articles.
Posted by wonderdog on November 27, 2007 at 9:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Just to lighten things up a bit.....true story. My daughter is a student at an out of state university, majoring in a science field. When we were researching scholarships, the university's financial aid department suggested she apply for a scholarship funded by an elderly couple to be awarded to a student who embodies "good, healthy, clean-living habits." One of the requirements to be awarded and to keep the scholarship is NO alcohol/smoking/other violations, etc. We were told that very few students even apply for it because of the requirements. She has received it for both her freshman and sophomore years and expects to have it renewed in the future.
Posted by wonderdog on November 28, 2007 at 10:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I agree, eyfigueroa, but a lot of kids don't look at it that way or take a great opportunity seriously. The out of state tuition is over $20k but will cost very little. We did a lot of research into financial aid and scholarships, both merit and need based,and the work study program.
Posted by tj66 on November 29, 2007 at 4:25 a.m. (Suggest removal)
we allmake our own choices.. whether we want to further our education or not...we have minorities in every race...but if we started a white college fund we are racist.. but they can have a negro college fund and that is ok,i think the naacp keeps the racial problems going,if its a black doing something to someone else they say nothing but if its a white doing it to a black they are all over it,naacp should worry more about its own race killing each other
Posted by jammer on November 29, 2007 at 8:01 a.m. (Suggest removal)
either you make the cut or you don't
if you make the cut and are poor then our lottery should kick in... I'm all for helping those that work hard and want to help themselves
if you're poor and don't make the cut then too bad so sad no matter what race unless you are willing to really put in the time and effort to come up to speed... of course you have to have the ability as well
if not go find alternate ways to make a living or find a tutor that can bring you up to speed - which the lotto should pay for as well if the person really honestly puts in the effort
this should be about a persons drive to succeed, not race