01/30/2012 Financing a College Education.

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VOLUME 22 • NUMBER 08

Also available in Digital Format There Are Still Bargains Out There

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® Editorial Board Publisher – José López-Isa Vice President & Chief Operating Officer – Orlando López-Isa

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The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine® is a national magazine published 23 times a year. Dedicated to exploring issues related to Hispanics in higher education,The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine® is published for the members of the higher education community. Editorial decisions are based on the editors’ judgment of the quality of the writing, the timeliness of the article, and the potential interest to the readers of The Hispanic Outlook Magazine®.

From time to time,The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine® will publish articles dealing with controversial issues.The views expressed herein are those of the authors and/or those interviewed and might not reflect the official policy of the magazine.The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine® neither agrees nor disagrees with those ideas expressed, and no endorsement of those views should be inferred unless specifically identified as officially endorsed by The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine®.

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Esquina E ditorial

W

elcome to our annual issue on financing a college education – a topic that’s garnering many a headline throughout the country.

Last month, the NPR show All Things Considered reported on a student at Western Governors University, a nonprofit online entity launched 15 years ago by 19 governors intent on helping adults with some college get a degree. The university provides a mentor who, like the student, works from home and stays in touch online or via phone. The mentor interviewed for the article had a caseload of 90 students.

Amazingly, Western Governors’ tuition of $6,000 has stayed the same for the last five years, while tuitions have skyrocketed nearly everywhere else. Bravo!

New Jersey’s groundbreaking Thomas Edison State College has been offering alternatives to self-directed students for nearly 40 years.

Its degree programs typically cost $10,000 to $20,000 less than those of other accredited institutions. And it’s just launched a 36-credit M.S. in Management in School Business Administration. Another school of this type is State University of New York’s Empire State College.

One of the cheapest, fastest ways to earn college credits is through CLEPs, 33 exams developed by the College Board. Designed to test pre-existing knowledge of a subject, some students find that even without it they can learn enough on their own to pass, using CLEP study guides and public library materials. $77 each, CLEPs can earn college credit at about 2,900 colleges and universities. You can sample test questions online, including the one in Spanish language, at clepcollegeboard.org.

As we face so many unknowns about public funding for education, Hispanic college hopefuls must start planning early and consider all paths. ¡Adelante!

Suzanne López-Isa Managing Editor

Community Mentor/Recruiter Dean of General Education Programs Assistant Professor of Reading Assistant Professor of Geology

For more information, call: 409-933-8269 In League City or Friendswood, call 888-258-8859, ext. 8269 www.com.edu/human-resources Apply online at: jobs.com.edu EEO/AAP Institution

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Po lit i cal Beat

Politics Is the Great Aphrodisiac

by Carlos D. Conde

H

erman Cain ran for president at the wrong time. He chose an era when it’s not about the female gender in presidential politics but about the American public seemingly getting sanctimonious over the macho factor in the White House.

Macho as in skirt-chasing, so we wonder why, when history tells us it’s been going on since George Washington’s days. No such indiscretions are proved about the father of our country, but we do know about another of our nation’s heroes, Thomas Jefferson, tomcatting in Paris and his intimacy with his plantation slave, Sally Hemmings.

And on and on it goes.

Cain, the former Godfather’s Pizza CEO, was on the high road toward a presidential bid when he ran into a slippery slope in the form of several women who accused him, and exposed, (oops, sorry!) his sexual indiscretions, real, or, as Cain professed, unreal.

Nevertheless, the damage was done, and Cain, knowing the fallout from the wrath of a woman scorned and the penalty Americans nowadays inflict on such public sins despite their appetite for such titillating events, called it quits, saying he had been done in by vindictive women who had misconstrued his motives.

Cain to the bitter end claimed he was just trying to help out those ungrateful ladies, which is not the way the girls remembered it.

Then along comes Newt

Gingrich riding a rebuilt political machine toward the Republican presidential nomination – until his history with the ladies surfaced, clouding his legitimate political attributes.

On this topic, Mitt Romney is the Second Christ compared to Newt.

Newt’s latest, once his congressional staffer, Callista Bisek, is now his third wife. According to Washington folklore, Gingrich supposedly is an insatiable lothario, in and out of office, married or unmarried.

Some of his antagonists are casting this as a moral weakness, with the intention supposedly being to stick him with a negative image with women voters, a persuasive bloc that may not take too kindly to another philanderer in the White House.

As my Mexican grandmother used to chant when affairs of the heart came up, “Y quien se ha muerto de eso.”

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who supposedly knew or suspected such things about her husband, once said, “There are two types of women; those who want power in the world and those who want power in the bedroom.”

History is replete with accounts of our political forefathers, from the White House to the halls of Congress, indulging in such extracurricular activities, so who’s to argue this isn’t just one of the perks of high public office.

Historians say John Adams used his vice president to procure his ladies. Woodrow Wilson and Warren G. Harding also supposedly kept paramours.

Dwight Eisenhower was supposedly chaste as president, but as World War II Supreme Allied Commander – almost like being the president then – he had a wellknown fling with his chauffeur, Kay Summersby.

Harry Truman wasn’t into those

things even when selling neckties in a haberdashery, and Jimmy Carter thought staring lustily at a woman was a sin. I worked in Richard Nixon’s White House, and he might have had his faults, but I’d wager infidelity wasn’t one of them.

No one accused the Bushes of such indiscretions, but Lyndon B. Johnson is another story.

Texan Madeline Brown claimed to being his mistress and of LBJ fathering her child, an allegation unsuccessfully pursued years later in court by her adult son.

Historian Merle Miller writes of some of LBJ’s hilarious episodes as a wolf.

Once after a bedroom liaison at the 1960 Democratic convention, LBJ, in leaving, held out his hand to his partner and said, “Ah want to thank you for yore help to my campaign.”

Another time, at LBJ’s Ranch White House, Johnson, in the middle of the night, slipped into the room of one of his young staffers and said, “Move over, honey, this is yore president.”

Whatever John F. Kennedy’s political legacy, it’s well known he was one of the most notorious womanizers, who supposedly told intimates that deprivation for more than three nights gave him a headache.

I was a reporter at the Dallas Morning News in 1963 when Kennedy was assassinated, and I still recall some of the traveling White House press corps regaling us provincials with JFK’s after-hours exploits and the “beards” who served him.

President Bill Clinton got impeached for his distortions about the “Zippergate Affair” with a young White House staffer, or “that woman,” as he referred to her.

There’s nothing yet on President Obama, but don’t think his detractors aren’t looking for something naughty to tarnish his political career.

I lived in metropolises like

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Dallas and Houston and political capitols like Caracas, Lima and Nassau, but never have I experienced a city with such high testosterone as Washington.

Remember Wilbur Mills, once the powerful chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee?

His prominent political career went kaput after his after-hours girlfriend, stripper Fanne Fox, jumped out of his car and into Washington’s Tidal Basin after a lovers spat.

Ted Kennedy’s presidential ambitions ended at Chappaquiddick when after an all-night bacchanal with his “Boiler Room” girls, he plunged his car into the bay along with his female companion, rescuing himself but leaving her to drown and not reporting it until the next morning.

There have been other political luminaries who have been seduced by the physical temptations and passions of Washington and who, like Herman Cain, opted to leave politics after they were outed.

How about former Sen. and once the Democrats’ vice president candidate John Edwards or GOP Sen. John Ensign of Nevada and, in the Clinton era, the promising Latino politician, Henry Cisneros?

All had troubled, career-ending affairs.

Another Clinton Cabinet member and former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is under investigation for illegally using campaign funds to buy off an unrequited lover.

About Washington players and their sex appeal, Henry Kissinger said it well, “Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.”

Carlos D. Conde, award-winning journalist and commentator, former Washington and foreign news correspondent, was an aide in the Nixon White House and worked on the political campaigns of George Bush Sr. To reply to this column, contact Cdconde@aol.com.

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MAGAZINE® JANUARY 30, 2012

CONTENTS

There Are Still Bargains Out There

There Are Still Bargains Out There – Some Offer Free Tuition – and a Free Computer! by Mary Ann Cooper

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High Cost of Low Grad Rates by Jeff Simmons

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Are America’s High Schools Preparing Students for College? by Gary M. Stern

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More Hispanics Taking Out Risky Private Loans to Pay for College by Marilyn Gilroy

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19 Closing the Education Gap: A Surge in Hispanic College Enrollment by Paul Hoogeveen Page 8 Women Fall Behind in Financial Literacy

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by Michelle Adam

26 New Report on Academic Majors and $ Earned: How Do Women and Minorities Fare? by Angela Provitera McGlynn

Online Article Journalist Claims Tenure/Adjuncts Lead to Poor Quality Education by Frank DiMaria To view this and other select articles online, go to our website: www.HispanicOutlook.com.

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DEPARTMENTS Political Beat

5

by Carlos D. Conde

Politics Is the Great Aphrodisiac

Scholars’ Corner

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by José Muñoz

Interesting Reads Book Review

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by Myrka A. González

The Havana Habit

Hispanics on the Move

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Hi gh Sch o ol F or um

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Hispanic High School and College Success: It’s Not a Man’s World by Mary Ann Cooper

FYI...FYI...FYI...

Page 16

Majors and Earnings – How Do They Fare?

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Targeting Higher Education: California Dreamin’

by Gustavo A. Mellander (Online only)

Priming the Pump...

by Miquela Rivera

Extracurricular Activities Help Latino Students Prepare for Higher Ed

Back Cover

Page 26

HO is also available in digital format; go to our website: www.HispanicOutlook.com.

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There Are Still Bargains Out There FINANCE

Some Offer Free Tuition – and a Free Computer!

H

by Mary Ann Cooper igher education is becoming more and more expensive, placing greater pressure on students and their families to hold the line on costs. Many students go out into the work force with a student loan debt of $100,000 of more. While President Obama recently authorized some relief through executive order for the way these loans will be repaid, paying down this debt – even at a lower rate and over a longer period of time – is a heavy burden.

For this year’s financing a college education issue, we’ve gone bargain hunting. Setting as our criteria total yearly student costs of less than $20,000 for in state students, and a threshold of 25 percent Hispanic students at each school, we’ve compiled a list of schools that seem to give the biggest financial and cultural bang for the buck for Hispanic students.

Schools from seven states made our list. The states represent only two regions of the country – the Northwest and the Southwest. Six of the seven states represented are in the Southwest – Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico and Texas. The Northwest is represented by the state of Washington. Likewise, 48 of the 50 schools on our list are from the Southwest.

Texas leads the way for bargain hunters with 21 of its schools represented, followed by New Mexico and California with nine schools each.

Colorado and Kansas are next with four and three schools represented, respectively. Arizona and Washington State each have two schools on our list. Since we were only considering schools with at least 25 percent Hispanic populations, it is not surprising to note that 36 of the 50 schools we listed are Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

While narrowing our focus to in-state student costs, we’ve also included out-of-state student costs as a basis for comparison. In most cases, we demonstrate that state residency makes an enormous difference when families are trying to keep down costs. In most states, including California, Texas and Colorado, the difference between in-state and out-of-state costs can range from a low of $3,000 to a high of $14,000 annually (in the case of the University of New Mexico-Main Campus). At a candidates’ debate, Texas governor and presidential candidate Rick Perry ran afoul of some GOP voters when he agreed that undocumented students should be allowed to pay in-state tuition. While that amounts to very little difference at South Plains College or Coastal Bend College, it amounts to a $6,000 or $7,000 difference in other Texas schools.

Kansas has the most level playing field, financially, for in-state and outof-state costs for students, with Donnelly College showing no difference and the other two Kansas schools showing a difference of less than $700 annually. In New Mexico, similarly, the difference in costs for in-state and out-of-state students at New Mexico Junior College is a mere $120.00 annually. California shows the most consistent wide gap between in-state and out-of-state student costs with the Cal State system showing an average gap of $11,000.

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In these tough economic times, spending $10,000 or $20,000 a year on college (or considerably less when grants and loans are put into the mix) can be daunting. The website TheBestCollege.org has some interesting choices for students seeking a tuition-free education. The competition for these schools is tough, and they accept very few applicants, however, a free tuition school is hard to ignore.

College of the Ozarks, Point Lookout, Mo. You might hear a lot about the College of the Ozarks during the upcoming presidential campaign. Some GOP candidates tout schools like College of the Ozarks because of its strict work-to-learn program. In fact, it has been nicknamed “Hard Work U” by locals and the press. The college accepts a limited number of students in financial need for the 34 academic areas it offers. Its 1,000-acre campus is on Lake Taneycomo in southwestern Missouri. In exchange for tuition-free schooling, students must work 15 hours a week when classes are in session and 40-hour weeks when school is not in session. Students are graded on their work just as they are graded on their academic classes. There is a student body of about 1,500 and a student-faculty ratio of 13-to-1.

Berea College, Berea, Ky. Berea College has a rigorous work/study program. The school was founded in 1855 and was the South’s first interracial and co-ed school.

Berea is able to offer free tuition to its students because of the large amount of endowment money as well as federal and state grants it receives.

Students must participate in the school’s work program to cover the costs of room and board and other expenses. Along with free tuition, all students receive a free computer that they can take with them when they graduate.

Berea offers 28 fields of study and has a 10-1 ratio of students-to-faculty.

Alice Lloyd College, Pippa Passes, Ky. Alice Lloyd College was established in 1923 by Alice Spencer Geddes Lloyd of Cambridge, Mass., and June Buchanan of New York City to educate local leaders. Students are selected from 108 counties in the Appalachian region of the country. Its program requires students to work a minimum of 160 hours per semester on campus or in the local community. The school offers 13 degree programs and advanced prep studies in law and medicine.

Cooper Union, New York City, N.Y. Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art has been offering free tuition since it was founded in 1859 by Peter Cooper, an American inventor, manufacturer and philanthropist. The school offers degree programs in architecture, fine arts, and some engineering disciplines. It enjoys a student-faculty ratio of 8.5-to-1. Although most of its students are accepted on a needs and academic basis, 7 percent of the student body is accepted on merit alone, without regard to financial need.

Colleges with Tuition Under $20K Per Year Total Price for Year 2010

Central Arizona College * Arizona Western College * Taft College * Reedley College * West Hills College Coalinga * California State University-Bakersfield * California State University-Monterey Bay * California State Polytechnic University-Pomona * California State University-Stanislaus * California State University-Los Angeles * California State University-San Bernardino * Colorado Heights University Otero Junior College * Trinidad State Junior College Adams State College * Dodge City Community College Garden City Community College Donnelly College * New Mexico Junior College * Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell Campus * University of New Mexico-Los Alamos Campus Eastern New Mexico University-Main Campus * Northern New Mexico College * New Mexico Highlands University * Western New Mexico University * University of New Mexico-Main Campus * New Mexico State University-Main Campus * South Plains College Galveston College * Howard College Clarendon College Wharton County Junior College Coastal Bend College * Southwest Texas Junior College * Odessa College Midland College * Western Texas College * Texas A&M University-Kingsville * The University of Texas of the Permian Basin * The University of Texas-Pan American * Sul Ross State University * The University of Texas at Brownsville * University of Houston-Victoria Angelo State University Texas State University-San Marcos * Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi * The University of Texas at San Antonio * University of Houston * Yakima Valley Community College Big Bend Community College

* Indicates Hispanic-Serving Institution

State

AZ AZ CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CA CO CO CO CO KS KS KS NM NM NM NM NM NM NM NM NM TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX TX WA WA

In-State Tuition Out-of-State Tuition Hispanic Living on Campus Living on Campus %

11,232 14,314 10,224 11,986 12,884 17,983 18,591 18,604 19,142 19,611 19,683 12,480 14,706 15,178 17,006 11,536 11,588 15,778 9,280 12,051 13,816 14,717 15,263 16,035 16,976 17,918 18,463 8,036 9,640 9,758 9,801 10,230 10,331 11,267 11,321 11,326 11,732 14,646 15,375 15,420 15,468 15,845 16,220 17,538 18,438 19,029 19,079 19,913 9,829 13,365

17,952 18,874 15,714 16,690 17,084 29,143 29,751 29,764 30,302 30,771 30,843 21,240 17,542 18,013 26,966 12,016 12,292 15,778 9,400 15,293 16,240 20,249 20,854 17,715 26,576 31,103 29,743 8,420 10,540 10,458 10,545 10,998 10,331 11,567 12,371 12,316 12,332 21,726 22,815 22,860 22,908 23,905 25,520 24,978 25,878 26,167 26,519 27,353 10,229 13,755

27 57 47 50 55 43 33 33 37 51 46 36 28 42 32 33 29 31 41 41 41 33 68 55 55 39 48 30 28 28 29 30 65 82 38 28 31 66 40 90 64 89 25 26 26 41 46 26 38 32

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FINANCE

High Cost of Low Grad Rates

by Jeff Simmons

$3.8 billion.

Mark Schneider, visiting scholar, American Enterprise Institute, and VP, American Institutes for Research, said the federally funded research and development work involving community and four-year colleges is a disaster.

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That’s the price tag Mark Schneider affixed to the nation’s college dropout rate. And, he explained in a new report, the costs only get steeper as the college completion rate stretches on for years.

“The system we have now is not working well for too many students,” Schneider said, “and the point is that dropouts are disproportionately coming out of community colleges and comprehensive colleges where lowincome, ethnic and first-generation students are much more likely to go.”

The losses amass and aren’t just in the number of students who depart higher education. They are the fiscal stresses exacted on the country as a whole, an economic impact that inevitably hits taxpayers where it might resonate the most: in the wallet.

“I asked, ‘What happens when these students won’t graduate? How much are they giving up? How much is the taxpayer losing by these students dropping out?’”

The answers are contained in one of three reports Schneider penned for the American Institutes for Research (AIR). The report, The High Cost of Low Graduation Rates: Taxpayers Lose Millions, focused on a cohort of students to tabulate the sizeable losses incurred annually by each and every graduating class.

Schneider’s report, created with researcher Lu (Michelle) Yu, found that more than 40 percent of incoming freshmen likely won’t earn a degree within six years, costing billions of dollars in lost earnings for the students and millions of dollars in lost tax revenue.

This crucial loss comes while President Barack Obama set a lofty goal that by the year 2020 the country will have the highest proportion of adults with college degrees in the world.

The report stressed, however, that colleges and universities are nevertheless graduating only slightly more than half of their students. While much of the cost of dropping out is borne by the students, who might have amassed debts in pursuit of a degree, the report calculated the high costs of the low completion rates in terms of lost income and in lower tax receipts for federal and state governments.

“As a nation, we incur hundreds of millions of dollars in lost income each year,” it read. “These losses translate into millions of dollars in lost income taxes. President Obama’s call for the United States to regain the lead as the nation in the world with the highest concentration of college and university degrees has a fiscal underpinning that is beyond question: Low college graduation rates are costly for students, for their families, and for taxpayers in each state and the nation as a whole.”

A nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., AIR is one of the largest behavioral and social science research organizations in the world. The organization, founded in 1946, wields scientific data to highlight ideas and approaches to improve everyday life. Most recently, AIR released three reports describing troubling patterns in higher education, and their effects.

One report, The Hidden Cost of Community Colleges, focused on the high costs of the low retention and completion rates that are often too typical at community colleges, which enrolled more than six million students last year.

AIR focused on only first-time, full-time, degree- and certificate-seeking

students in community colleges and, using data from the U.S. Department of Education, found that community colleges are generating costs to the taxpayer that are usually not part of the discussion of their role in America’s system of higher education.

In the third report, Finishing the First Lap: The Cost of First-Year Attrition in America’s Four-Year Colleges and Universities, AIR reviewed federal data and determined that 30 percent of first-year college students who dropped out before starting a second year accounted for $6.2 billion in state appropriations for colleges and universities and more than $1.4 billion in student grants from the states.

Additionally, the federal government provided $1.5 billion in grants to these students. Further, the report found that 13 states posted more than $200 million of state funds lost to students dropping out before that second year.

“There is a consistent theme in all of this,” Schneider said. “I believe that institutions are not doing a sufficient job in terms of helping students who are harder to educate than White, middle-class kids; they are not doing what they need to do to have more students complete their degrees.”

Adriana Flores-Ragade, director of diversity initiatives for the College Board, agreed, stating: “Without having an educated Latino community, we will not be able to reach any of our goals.”

The College Board just released its College Completion Agenda Latino Edition, which charts Latino demographic growth and notes disturbing dropout rates. For instance, the College Board found that: • Latino youth now represent the largest minority group in K-12 schools in the country, and are the fastest-growing segment of students; but they are also the largest group of students dropping out of high school before graduation • 19.2 percent of Latino 25- to 34-year-olds had attained an associate degree or higher, less than half the national rate; the national average is 41.1 percent, with 69.1 percent of Asian-American, 48.7 percent of White and 29.4 percent of African-American 25- to 34-year-olds attaining an associate degree or higher as of 2009 • Latino students represent the largest group of students dropping out of high school before graduation; in 2008, approximately one in five Latinos left high school before graduation • As of 2008, 45.1 percent of undergraduate Latino students required some remediation “The College Board is working with Univision on an outreach campaign,” Flores-Ragade said of the increased efforts to boost the rate.

“Getting to the parents is really making a difference. We have to engage families to help with college retention.”

In The High Cost of Low Graduation Rates, Schneider pointed out the economic toll exacted by the troubling dropout rates. For students who in the fall of 2002 started as full-time students seeking bachelor’s degrees but failed to graduate six years later, the cost to the country was: $3.8 billion in lost income; $566 million in lost federal income taxes; and $164 million in lost state income taxes.

And, Schneider noted, those estimated losses were only for one year, and for one class of students. Such losses accumulate each year.

AIR analyzed the most recent available graduation data, for the 2008-09 academic year, from the federal education department’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, or IPEDS, to calculate estimates of lost incomes and taxes, estimating the number of students who dropped out from each four-year degree-granting campus covered by IPEDS. Campus-bycampus numbers were pooled to total the number of dropouts in each state.

AIR cautioned that the calculation underestimates the number of college dropouts because part-time students graduate at even lower rates than the full-time ones covered by IPEDS, which also doesn’t track transfer students who might go on to graduate at another school.

Further, AIR analyzed the median earnings of young adults with some college experience but no degree, and those with a bachelor’s degree. For example, the income gap between college dropouts and college graduates for 21- to 24-year-olds, adjusted to 2010 dollars, was less than $8,000 in Kansas, Hawaii, North Carolina, Washington and Florida, but more than $11,000 in California, New Jersey and New York.

Multiplying this gap between college dropouts and college graduates by the number of dropouts produces an estimate of lost earnings for each state.

Additionally, to estimate the size of the lost federal income taxes, using the 2010 federal tax rate schedule, AIR calculated the federal income taxes due at the income level of a college graduate versus the income level of a young adult with some college but no degree. Summing those numbers up across states produced the national estimate: $566 million.

AIR pointed out which states lost more than $100 million annually in income as a result, with California (at $386 million), New York (at $359 million), Texas ($341 million), Pennsylvania ($185 million) and Illinois ($173 million) topping the list. As a result, those states lost $57 million, $53 million, $51 million, $27 million and $25 million in federal taxes, respectively.

The numbers were dramatically worse when viewed over a lifetime. In California, for example, college dropouts were losing nearly $15 billion in earnings over their work lives, costing the federal government more than $3 billion in lost income taxes. College dropouts from New York and Texas were losing more than $13 billion in earnings over their lifetime and more than $2.5 billion in federal taxes. And, dropouts in other states, including Illinois and Florida, were losing more than $5 billion in lifetime earnings and more than $1 billion in federal taxes.

“Students who start college but do not graduate incur large personal expenses,” the report noted. “They pay thousands of dollars in tuition, they likely take out loans, they change their lives, but they fail in one of the most important goals they have ever set for themselves. In the meantime, taxpayers pay billions of dollars in grants and state appropriations to support these students as they pursue degrees they will never earn.”

Experts echoed Schneider’s assessment, that the most affected students are those from low-income families, the first in their families to attend college, and struggling academically. And more often than not, the Hispanic students are disproportionately affected.

Carlos Santiago, CEO of the Hispanic College Fund, said colleges must strengthen efforts not just to attract Hispanic students to attend higher education institutions but to retain them once they are there, and guide them to graduation.

“While we realize that universities make certain efforts to increase retention, it’s not their core mission and it leaves many Latino students behind,” Santiago said. “The truth is that students aren’t getting the kind of attention that they need, and particularly Latino students. So many of them are first-generation that they cannot turn to a family member and ask ‘What did you do to stay in college, and how did you juggle work and studies.’ Students are left to fend for themselves.” The fiscal strain affects everyone from the individual student to the country.

“It is expensive for us to go out and find the resources for these students, but it’s also expensive for the students to not complete their degree.

They are left with a lot of debt and very serious issues that they are going to have to face. The family and the community are all negatively impacted if these students don’t finish,” he said.

Scholarships alone won’t help if they are viewed as simply pots of money. Instead, organizations like the Hispanic College Fund are re-branding their fiscal support as a service, ones that provide resources – such as pre-college programs offering more comprehensive information – to help students get to, and stay, in school.

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“This is hugely important,� Santiago said. “The demographics alone indicate how important this population is, and no one denies that. What’s interesting about this report is it really starts to cement the costs of leaving people behind.�

Bob Wise, West Virginia’s former governor, and now the president of the Alliance for Excellent Education, said the root of low Hispanic graduation rates is planted in the earlier grades, when Hispanic students typically trail White peers, most noticeably on fourth- and eighth-grade reading scores.

The Nation’s Report Card (the National Assessment of Educational Progress) in 2011 identified a 22-point gap in average reading scores of White and Hispanic eighth-graders, only a three-point improvement over the last decade. “At that rate, it would take more than 50 years for the gap to close completely,� Wise said. “Without strong reading skills, students tend to struggle once they encounter more challenging subject matter in high

school. This challenge is reflected in graduation rates, which are approaching 80 percent for White students, but are below 60 percent for Hispanic students.�

According to an analysis by the Alliance for Excellent Education, if just half of the approximately 360,000 Hispanic students who dropped out from the class of 2010 had graduated, together these 180,000 new graduates would likely be earning an additional $2.2 billion each year compared to what they will earn without a high school diploma, he noted.

What does this all mean for the country? Already, 60 percent of jobs require some form of education after high school, but too many of the nation’s Hispanic students aren’t even earning a high school diploma, the ticket to higher education.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Hispanic population is projected to nearly triple - from 46.7 million to 132.8 million – during the 2008-2050 period. This population increase coupled with continually lagging graduation rates will yield severe economic woes. “Because the country’s economic strength is inextricably tied to the education level of its citizens, American high schools will need to significantly increase the percentage of Hispanic students who receive a high school diploma, or risk weakening the nation’s economy,â€? Wise said. )Ä–ÄŁÄšÄĽÄ’Ä˜Ä– $Ä Ä?Ä?ĖĘĖ Ä Ä— 0Ä¤ÄĽÄ–Ä ÄĄÄ’ÄĽÄ™ÄšÄ” .ĖĕĚĔĚÄ&#x;Ä– The Alliance for Excellent Education affixed a 0IJP 6OJWFSTJUZ JOWJUFT BQQMJDBUJPOT BOE OPNJOBUJPOT GPS UIF QPTJUJPO PG %FBO PG UIF )FSJ similarly compelling price-tag on low graduation UBHF $PMMFHF PG 0TUFPQBUIJD .FEJDJOF rates: Nationwide, if high schools and colleges ÉŠF $PMMFHF PG 0TUFPQBUIJD .FEJDJOF XBT GPVOEFE JO CZ BO BDU PG UIF 0IJP (FOFSBM were able to boost the graduation rates of "TTFNCMZ UP IFMQ BMMFWJBUF UIF TUBUF T HSPXJOH TIPSUBHF PG GBNJMZ QIZTJDJBOT BOE UP USBJO EPD UPST GPS UIF DISPOJDBMMZ VOEFSTFSWFE BSFBT ÉŠF )FSJUBHF $PMMFHF JT SBOLFE mSTU JO 0IJP BOE Hispanic, African-American and Native American UJFE GPS UI BNPOH BMM NFEJDBM TDIPPMT JO UIF DPVOUSZ GPS QSPEVDJOH UIF IJHIFTU QFSDFOUBHF students to the levels of White students by 2020, PG HSBEVBUFT QSBDUJDJOH JO SVSBM BSFBT the potential increase in personal income across ÉŠF )FSJUBHF $PMMFHF PG 0TUFPQBUIJD .FEJDJOF USBJOT QIZTJDJBOT BOE TVQQPSUT SFTFBSDI BU the nation would add, conservatively, more than JUT NBJO DBNQVT MPDBUFE JO "UIFOT 0IJP BT XFMM BT UISPVHIPVU JUT $FOUFST PG 0TUFPQBUIJD $310 billion to the economy.

3FTFBSDI BOE &EVDBUJPO $03& TZTUFN BO JOUFHSBUFE TUBUFXJEF NFEJDBM FEVDBUJPO DPO TPSUJVN GPSNFE CZ BċMJBUJPOT CFUXFFO UIF )FSJUBHF $PMMFHF BOE UFBDIJOH IPTQJUBMT JO 0IJP “Preparation for success in college begins BT XFMM BT PUIFS DPMMFHFT PG PTUFPQBUIJD NFEJDJOF OBUJPOXJEF ɊFSF BSF OFBSMZ TUVEFOUT long before a student walks onto a college camBOE PWFS JOUFSOT SFTJEFOUT BOE GFMMPXT XJUIJO JUT VOEFSHSBEVBUF BOE HSBEVBUF NFEJDBM pus,� Wise said. “Raising the college graduation FEVDBUJPO QSPHSBNT VOEFS UIF TVQFSWJTJPO PG BċMJBUFE GBDVMUZ NFNCFST GVMMZ BċMJBUFE

rate for Hispanic students first means graduating more Hispanic students from high school with &NQPXFSFE CZ UIF NJMMJPO BXBSE GSPN UIF 0TUFPQBUIJD )FSJUBHF 'PVOEBUJPOT UIF )FSJUBHF $PMMFHF JT QPJTFE UP FYQBOE JUT VOEFSHSBEVBUF USBJOJOH GBDJMJUJFT UP BO BEEJUJPOBM the skills they need to succeed in college.�

DBNQVT JO UIF TUBUF FYQBOE SFTFBSDI BOE USFBUNFOU PG EJBCFUFT BT XFMM BT NVTDVMPTLFMFUBM One way to combat this problem is to invest BOE OFVSPMPHJDBM EJTPSEFST BOE SF FOHJOFFS QSJNBSZ DBSF NFEJDBM FEVDBUJPO UISPVHI UIF more resources into research and development.

EFWFMPQNFOU PG SVSBM BOE VSCBO USBDLT BOE UIF USBJOJOH PG QIZTJDJBO TDJFOUJTUT Schneider said the federally funded research and 3FQPSUJOH UP UIF &YFDVUJWF 7JDF 1SFTJEFOU BOE 1SPWPTU UIF %FBO PG UIF )FSJUBHF $PMMFHF PG 0TUFPQBUIJD .FEJDJOF BMTP TFSWFT BT &YFDVUJWF %FBO GPS )FBMUI "ÄŠBJST JO UIF 0IJP development work involving community and four6OJWFSTJUZ )FBMUI 4DJFODFT $FOUFS BOE BT BO FY PÄ‹DJP NFNCFS PG UIF #PBSE PG %JSFDUPST PG year colleges is a disaster.

UIF 6OJWFSTJUZ .FEJDBM "TTPDJBUFT UIF GBDVMUZ QSBDUJDF QMBO "EEJUJPOBM JOGPSNBUJPO BCPVU “It’s almost nonexistent,� he said. “The work UIF $PMMFHF BOE %FBO TFBSDI DBO CF GPVOE BU XXX PVDPN PIJPV FEV

is almost exclusively focused on K-12, which is 8IJMF BQQMJDBUJPOT BOE OPNJOBUJPOT XJMM CF BDDFQUFE VOUJM UIF QPTJUJPO JT mMMFE JOUFSFTUFE important. But given how much money is at QBSUJFT TIPVME TVCNJU UIFJS NBUFSJBMT CZ 'FCSVBSZ UP BTTVSF PQUJNBM DPOTJEFSBUJPO $POmEFOUJBM SFWJFX PG NBUFSJBMT BOE TDSFFOJOH PG DBOEJEBUFT XJMM CFHJO JO .BSDI BOE DPO stake, we have a terrible ‘R and D’ effort at a fedUJOVF VOUJM UIF QPTJUJPO JT mMMFE "MM DPSSFTQPOEFODF TIPVME CF EJSFDUFE JO DPOmEFODF UP UIF eral level.�

6OJWFSTJUZ T FYFDVUJWF SFDSVJUNFOU DPOTVMUBOU Additionally, the data systems that are in 0Ä™ÄšÄ 6Ä&#x;ĚħĖģĤĚļĪ )$0. place federally need to be utilized better to track 3 8ÄšÄ?Ä?ĚĒĞ 'ÄŚÄ&#x;Äœ ĂŠ "Ä¤Ä¤Ä Ä”ÄšÄ’ÄĽÄ–Ä¤ what happens with many of these students, par"UUO ,BZMB 0 3PVSLF ticularly ones who transfer to other institutions.

That alone would give a clearer picture of the )JHIMBOE 1BSL 7JMMBHF 4VJUF t %BMMBT 59 ultimate graduation rate. &NBJM LSJTIB DSFBM!SXJMMJBNGVOL DPN “Without good research and development 'BY and a good data system that you could track what’s happening,� he said, “we are stuck with _0IJP 6OJWFSTJUZ JT BO FRVBM PQQPSUVOJUZ FNQMPZFS BOE TUSPOHMZ FODPVSBHFT BQQMJDBOUT GSPN VOEFSSFQSFTFOUFE HSPVQT XIP XJMM NBJOUBJO EJWFSTJUZ JO UIF VOJWFSTJUZ DPNNVOJUZ_ pretty much an empty playbook.�

%FBO

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FINANCE

Are America’s High Schools Preparing Students for College?

Who

by Gary M. Stern do you ask to ascertain whether high schools prepare American students for college and work? The College Board decided to go right to the source – recent high school graduates. In August 2011, it hired Hart Research Associates to survey 1,500 of 2010’s high school graduates about the effects of high school on their lives and postsecondary studies. That led to the report One Year Out. The College Board noted that reports have been written from the perspective of college faculty and administrators but overlooked the viewpoint of recent graduates with one-year hindsight on high school. It figured their viewpoint could prove beneficial and useful to educators, administrators and college staff, said Trevor Packer, a vice president at the College Board, based in New York. It hoped the report could fill “a gap in understanding of the experience of students who have left high school,” he added.

The dominant themes that emerged from One Year Out included the following: 1) high school requirements are too easy and school curriculums don’t make enough academic demands on students; 2) students should be required to take more math and science courses – that decision shouldn’t be left to them; 3) as a result of lax demands, high school graduates aren’t sufficiently prepared to handle many college courses.

Of the students surveyed, half by telephone and half online, 69 percent said that high school requirements were too easy and only 30 percent found high school classes challenging. Students polled consisted of 59 percent White students, 18 percent Latino, 16 percent African-American, 4 percent Asian-American and 3 percent other. Of that number, 43 percent had enrolled in a four-year college; 25 percent, community college; 6 percent, trade school; and 26 percent did not enroll in any postsecondary institution.

When Frances Contreras, director of the Higher Education Program at the University of Washington and author of Achieving Equity for Latino Students, first read One Year Out, what surprised her was that 86 percent of students said college was essential to establishing a strong career. She said there’s been a backlash against viewing college as a necessity and the survey reveals that students are optimistic about the value of a college education. What concerned her was the difficulty students faced financing their

postsecondary education – more about that later.

The fact that nearly 70 percent of students thought high school didn’t make enough academic demands on them validated “that many of them are entering college and can’t perform at the level of expectation,” Packer said.

That lack of ability to meet minimum standards forces colleges to place considerable resources into remedial classes, often at no credit for the student.

Fixing the Problem One underlying problem that the report raises is that most high school students aren’t receiving enough counseling or guidance early on in their education, Packer said. Many students don’t ascertain what college expects of them until their junior or senior year, and by that time it’s too late to catch up. “Students need counseling in sixth, seventh and eighth grades so they can make incremental steps toward college,” he noted.

Packer pointed to South Bronx Preparatory – a K-12 charter school overseen by the College Board and located in one of the poorest districts in the country – that has had success helping students attain national levels for math, science and English. Its teachers also provide counseling and help guide students to take a more demanding, rigorous curriculum, which contributes to their academic success and putting them on a college path.

“They’re aligning curriculum along grade levels; students are experiencing a vigorous course of study step by step and through each grade,” he says.

Contreras said that there’s been a “disconnect between colleges and high schools.” Colleges need to see high schools as a partner. Since many high school budgets have been depleted, colleges must step up and take a more active role in K-12 public schools, collaborate with faculty and help establish minimum standards. For example, she said the University of Southern California’s Diversity Scorecard Project, which mostly addressed higher education issues, also connects college faculty with local high schools to collaborate on college transition. That partnership entails articulating requirements to ensure college readiness.

Here are other key responses from One Year Out: 1. A walloping 80 percent of high school graduates said they’d like to see

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Trevor Packer, vice president, the College Board

curriculum strengthened and more rigorous academic demands made on them.

2. Graduates were also self-critical; nearly half said they wished they had worked harder in high school so they would be better prepared for secondary education. In fact, 40 percent of students wished they have taken more math courses; and 33 percent, more science.

3. Of the students attending college, 54 percent said first-year college courses were more difficult than they expected. In fact, 24 percent of students were obligated to take remedial or developmental courses.

4. More than four of five graduates said Advancement Placement or International Baccalaureate courses were more rewarding than the typical high school classes and better prepared them for college.

Why Students Aren’t Taking More Math and Science Packer attributes the dearth of students taking sufficient math and science courses to the lack of consistent state requirements. Most high schools demand that students take four years of English but make math and science voluntary, and that ultimately does students a disservice. He says because American students fare so poorly in international rankings in math and science testing, the tide has turned and requirements are being strengthened.

Latino Students Showing Improvement Though Latino and minority students are often criticized for not meeting minimum academic standards, Packer says Latino students are making

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“impressive results nationwide. Part of that is due to the influence of parents and through leaders.” For example, in Florida, Hispanic students outnumber White students in AP classes and outperform White and Spanish students in AP exams. Packer says many states have been encouraging qualified students to take more AP classes and reduce their college bills since they receive college credit if they pass the AP exam.

Of the 26 percent of students who didn’t start college immediately, 80 percent of them said they plan on starting college at a later time. But studies show that most students who defer college get caught up in work and life and don’t enroll as intended. Packer says though some students take a year off, many lose interest in college and get sidetracked. “Many who say they want to attend won’t, particularly minority students,” he says. If colleges could obtain a database of names of nearby graduates, it might help to reach them at an earlier stage.

In order to reach minority students who are exploring college, four-year colleges must do a more effective job of targeting them in community colleges, Contreras said. Often a minority student might take one course for work or several for a certificate, and that’s the time when they’re ready to learn about earning an associate degree and moving on to a four-year degree. That entails four-year colleges performing more active outreach at community colleges, establishing communication, forming partnerships and staying in touch with admissions departments. For example, if a student took one course in nursing, admissions might suggest a two-year program.

Dealing with College Finances Hasn’t Been Easy Not only must high school students strengthen themselves academically, but handling tuition and other costs of a college education has become an albatross for the majority of students. Indeed, 55 percent of high school graduates said figuring out a way to afford college has been difficult, and that number rose to 65 percent for students attending private colleges.

Seventy percent of students either took out loans or worked 10 hours a week, and 20 percent did both. Of the 26 percent of students who didn’t start college immediately, 56 percent of them identified the high cost as a significant obstacle to starting college.

Many minority students in particular are reluctant to take out loans to attend college, Contreras said. “Loans set up many students for failure.

Some can’t repay the loans.” One way to minimize the need for loans is to broaden the requirements for merit loans, so more Latino and minority students who show interest in math, science and engineering, for example, are eligible. It shouldn’t only be the top 10 percent of students who deserve merit scholarships.

In fact, 70 percent of students polled had to work 10 hours a week, and Contreras says research shows that most Latino students must work 20 hours a week minimum. Forced to work that many hours affects their grades and retention. Work-study programs used to serve as one way to offset the need for devoting so many hours to work, but many of those programs have been eliminated due to state budget cuts. Restoring them would heighten graduation rate of Latino students.

Packer sees better counseling as another way to offset some of the difficulties students are facing paying for colleges. If students received counseling in middle school and as a freshman, they can begin to address the issue and arrange a plan or blueprint to obtain financial aid. Moreover, he says most students need assistance matching their academic level with choosing the right college that is also affordable.

Rising Number of Latinos Taking AP Courses Advanced Placement courses produced the most positive effect on high

DEAN OF THE SCHOOL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON

Frances Contreras, director, Higher Education Program, University of Washington, author of Achieving Equity for Latino Students

school students. Packer, who used to head AP at the College Board, notes that college faculties develop these courses with high school teachers and understand what’s expected in postsecondary classes. Over the last few years, AP participation in high school has been rising about 10 percent a year, and over the last few years, Latino involvement has been increasing around 20 percent annually.

If Packer could see two actions that emanate as a result of this report, he suggests: 1) a widespread national commitment to increasing the number of counselors who can help students in their college preparation and reach students at a younger age, not waiting until they were juniors or seniors in high school; 2) requiring students to take more rigorous academic courses in high school, particularly in math and science, which will prepare them better to handle college academics.

Contreras would like to see the report lead to states “rethinking how we invest in this generation. Taxpayers should receive incentives for helping children through college. Working families should receive incentives,” she said, which would make college more affordable.

Bottom line, graduating students have said loud and clear that “students need education beyond high school to succeed. Vocational programs aren’t enough,” Contreras noted. But for Latino and other students to succeed in college, high schools must increase academic demands, and colleges need to play a more active role in partnering with high schools.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison invites applications and nominations for the position of dean of its School of Veterinary Medicine. UW-Madison is a major land-grant university committed to excellence in teaching, research and public service with revenues of $2.4 billion, a student body of approximately 42,000 and faculty/staff of approximately 20,000. The university seeks a charismatic individual with a record of visionary, optimistic leadership who can extend the school’s positive trajectory in research/scholarship, learning, and public service through a bold vision of the role of veterinary medicine in discovery, research translation and global health. The dean reports to the chancellor and the provost, serves on the university’s council of deans, and provides leadership for veterinary medicine and public health initiatives across the campus. The dean serves as the chief academic and executive officer of the school with responsibility for faculty and staff development, personnel oversight, fund raising, budget planning and management, curriculum, student academic affairs, clinical resources, and facilities development. The school, with a budget of $54.5 million, including research expenditures of $20.2 million, is comprised of approximately 325 FTE faculty and staff, and 300 FTE employees in training, graduate assistants and student hourly workers. The dean has oversight of the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, which includes responsibility for teaching within the hospital, patient care, and research, as well as several units dedicated to basic science research and teaching. The dean holds a shared responsibility for promoting and facilitating the success of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.

Please see http://secfac.wisc.edu/searches/VetMedDean/2012/vacancy announcement.htm for more information about the deanship.

Candidates must have a record of scholarship and teaching that qualifies them for a tenured appointment at the rank of full professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and hold the earned degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or equivalent.

Electronic applications and nominations must be received by 9 March 2012 to ensure consideration. Later applications and nominations may also be considered. The committee particularly encourages applications and nominations of women and persons of underrepresented groups. Applicants should include a current resume or curriculum vitae and a comprehensive cover letter that addresses how their strengths and experience match the qualifications for the position, and what they see as challenges and opportunities of the position, as well as the names, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers of five references. Candidates will be consulted before references are contacted. Please note that in accordance with Wisconsin statutes the names of nominees and applicants who explicitly request confidentiality will not be made public, although the university is required to release the names and titles of the finalists who will be interviewed by the chancellor and the provost. Submit applications and nominations electronically to the School of Veterinary Medicine Dean Search and Screen Committee at: Vet-Med-Dean-Search@secfac.wisc.edu

Questions may be directed to the search committee office at 608-262-1677 or ehanneman@secfac.wisc.edu The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer.

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FINANCE

More Hispanics Taking Out Risky Private Loans to Pay for College

An

by Marilyn Gilroy increasing number of Hispanics are taking out private student loans to pay tuition bills, a strategy experts say is one of the riskiest ways to finance a college education. These loans typically have uncapped, variable interest rates that are highest for those who can least afford them, such as low-income, firstgeneration students. Private student loans also lack important consumer protections and flexible repayment options that come with federal student loans, such as unemployment deferments, income-based repayment, and public service loan forgiveness.

A new report from The Project on Student Debt at the Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS) says many students who take out private loans could have taken out safer federal loans but did not do so for a variety of reasons, including not understanding the difference between the two types of debt. The report, Critical Choices: How Colleges Can Help Students and Families Make Better Decisions About Private Loans, shows that college financial aid offices can and should play a significant role in reducing their students’ reliance on private loans.

“College financial aid offices have unique opportunities and responsibilities to help people make informed and affordable choices about student loans,” said TICAS president Lauren Asher. “Millions of students end up with risky and expensive private loans when they actually have safer options, and the financial consequences can be devastating and last a lifetime. We found that counseling and information at critical decision points can really help borrowers make smarter choices.”

According to TICAS research, the percentage of Hispanic undergraduates who took out private

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loans more than doubled between 2003-04 and 2007-08, from 5 percent to 13 percent. During this time period, overall private loan volume grew substantially, from $6.5 billion to $17.1 billion. African-American undergraduates registered the highest percentage increase, which quadrupled from 4 percent to 17 percent. These figures are based on the latest available data from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, which

Matthew Reed, program director, TICAS

is conducted every four years.

The advantages of federal loans begin with interest rates that can vary from 3.4 percent for subsidized Stafford loans to 8.5 percent for loans targeted at graduate students, known as Grad PLUS. Private loans can carry interest rates

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as high as 19 percent. Another advantage of federal loans is that repayment terms can be modified to an income-based plan. This means if a borrower is unemployed or working in a lowwage job, the monthly payments are structured so the debt is more manageable.

But even though the terms of borrowing obviously favor federal loans, there are several reasons why an increasing number of Hispanics and other students are gravitating to private loans.

Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of FinAid.org, examined why student borrowers take out private loans instead of the cheaper federal loans that have better repayment plans. He found that more than half of undergraduates who borrowed from the private sector cited the complexity of the federal student loan application process, which requires the submission of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. In addition, some students think their families earn too much to qualify for federal student loans when, in fact, there is no income limit.

“Students who believe that they will not qualify for federal grants and who want loans might prefer an application process that takes just a few minutes to one that requires hours of work, despite the lower cost and better repayment terms of federal education loans,” Kantrowitz wrote in a recent analysis of borrowing patterns.

Although the FAFSA form has been simplified in recent years, it still can be an obstacle for some Hispanic students because of their family immigration status. The Project on Student Debt report said that one of the most common reasons that financial aid administrators hear from students about why they apply for private loans is that they do not want to give personal information to the government. This can be the

students in 31 states enrolled in colleges that block students’ access to federal student loans.

Many of these colleges have opted out of federal loan programs because of their concern about students’ ability to repay the loans and that a high cohort default rate could affect the college’s reputation and access to other federal grants.

Of Hispanic students in community colleges, 8.5 percent are enrolled in nonparticipating col-

making sure that students understand debt management and default risks.

For example, Loyola University of New Orleans requires students applying for private student loans who have not completed a FAFSA to sign and return a form acknowledging the choice to not file for a federal loan or indicate they will now file a FAFSA before continuing their pursuit of a private loan.

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case for Hispanic students who were born in the U.S. but have parents who are undocumented immigrants. The students themselves are eligible for federal student aid but might be reluctant to apply because of their parents’ status.

However, many of the reasons for the increase in private loans for college are based on widespread misinformation. Some of the misleading information comes from marketing techniques for private loans that use ease of application to appeal to students. Teaser ads on many Internet sites promise a simple application process and fast decisions, sometimes as fast as three minutes or less. They also attract borrowers by touting initial low interest rates.

“The marketing doesn’t tell the whole story,” said Matthew Reed, program director, TICAS. “They might have an initial low rate, but those rates are often variable. If you are paying the loan over a 10- or 20-year time period, the interest rate could go up significantly.”

Some experts predict that if interest rates do rise on thousands of loans, it could lead to a huge default problem down the road, much like what happened in the subprime mortgage market.

Reed says that even fixed rate private loans are not safe because they have none of the usual consumer protections that come with credit card and bank loans.

Despite these cautions, there are other factors that drive Hispanics to choose private loans, and it all starts with where they enroll in college.

Many Hispanics go back to school as adult students and attend school part time while also supporting other family members. For this reason, they need a nontraditional pathway to a degree and choose to enroll in expensive, forprofit colleges, the higher education sector in which students are the most likely to borrow.

When they apply for financial aid, the school sends a letter outlining a package of assistance.

“One of the most problematic practices is how loans are packaged,” said Reed. “Some for-profit institutions send electronic notifications regarding financial aid which includes federal grants, loans and private loans. It looks like the institution is giving tacit approval to these loans, which might keep families from looking to other places.”

In other cases, Hispanic students who attend two-year colleges might be forced to turn to private loans because some of the colleges do not participate in federal loan programs. As the Project for Student Debt says, these students are “between a rock and a hard place.” According to the project, there are more than one million

leges. In California and Texas, two states with significant Hispanic populations, the number of Hispanic two-year college students without access to federal aid is higher, at 11.2 percent and 9.8 percent, respectively. If these students want to borrow, they must either use credit card debt or private loans to pay for their college expenses.

Students Toward Cheaper, Safer Loans The Critical Choices report documents promising practices used by a variety of financial aid offices to help prospective borrowers avoid debt that is risky and costly. It also identifies key opportunities in which colleges can guide students’ and parents’ borrowing decisions. In interviews, the financial aid administrators shared the broad consensus that students who want to borrow should use a “federal first” approach, but their practices varied considerably.

The most promising practices involve some form of counseling for students who apply for private loans, particularly those with untapped federal loan eligibility. In these cases, financial aid officers intervene by phone, letter, or e-mail, to influence students during the decision-making process about what type of loan to use. The outreach includes financial literacy counseling,

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Colorado State University contacts students and has a phone conversation about the advantages of federal loans over private loans before certifying a private loan.

At San Diego State University, in which approximately 30 percent of the student body is Latino, students must complete an online “alternative loan counseling process” before the school will certify a private student loan.

These strategies have been successful. At schools that tracked the impact of their intervention policies, about half or more of students contacted changed their borrowing plans.

Chris Collins, associate director in the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships at San Diego State University, says his area generates annual reports to determine if private loan use is increasing or decreasing, and to provide insights into the effectiveness of existing programs.

“Private loan borrowing decreased markedly after we implemented alternative loan counseling as a requirement, and we will be considering additional enhancements to our private loan approach in the future,” he said. “We are committed to educating students about their options regarding private loans, and we are optimistic that this approach will help students avoid being overwhelmed with unmanageable loan debt.”

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Matthew Reed hopes that more institutions will adopt these types of policies and become proactive in helping students tap into their federal loan potential. He would like colleges and universities to dispel the myth that getting access to federal money is a long and cumbersome process.

“The federal loan process has become faster,” he said. “The whole application and review is more streamlined and some financial aid officers say students can see the fund credited to their account within a week’s time.”

Efforts to steer students toward federal stu-

dent loans got a boost when one of the biggest complaints regarding private loans gained the attention of Congress. At issue is the fact that private loans currently enjoy the same protection as federal loans in that neither can be discharged during bankruptcy. However, federal loans, which are backed by taxpayer money, need that protection to make it difficult for students to avoid paying the loans. Many believe that private loans, which are very profitable, do not deserve this protection and should be treated like credit card loans, which can be discharged during bankruptcy, thus making it undesirable for

lenders to make risky loans. Three senators and four U.S. representatives have introduced legislation that will eliminate unfair protection for private student loans.

“By repealing special treatment for private lenders, we will hold banks accountable, protect young people from abusive lending practices and provide relief for graduates trapped by loans that can too often carry high interest rates and unfair terms,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, DR.I., one of the sponsors of the bill.

Scholars’ Corner Higher education is frequently considered a catalyst for social advancement, yet the sad reality is that not everyone participates. Comprising a substantial part of this nonparticipating group are members of underrepresented minority groups. This is not from a lack of desire, but rather from myriad obstacles they must overcome to successfully complete a postsecondary education. As a doctoral student of educational leadership and policy analysis at the University of Missouri (MU), I focus my efforts on studying these numerous obstacles preventing members of our community from successfully partaking in higher education.

Prior to starting my graduate studies, I worked as a program coordinator for the GEAR UP program at the University of California-Irvine’s Center for Educational Partnerships. Through my work, I served as an advocate for Hispanic students and their families, providing them with opportunities to learn about and pursue higher education. Now, as a doctoral student at MU, I continue this work, participating in efforts to enhance the experiences of Hispanic students on the University of Missouri campus. This includes efforts to make the university aware of the dramatic increase in the Hispanic population across the state, especially at the K-12 level, with the intention of restructuring the university’s recruitment efforts to target and better serve Hispanic communities. Additionally, my position as research assistant helps me advance this agenda.

My research interests include college access, development and persistence for underrepresented student populations, the role of family for college students, and the impact of financial aid policy on underrepresented student populations. My assistantships with a faculty member who researches the role of financial aid policy in college access, and with MU’s Economic & Policy Analysis Resource Center, evaluating state implemented college access programs for the Missouri Department of Higher Education and local school districts, help advance my research agenda. As important as my involvement in research opportunities is for my professional development, it is also my participation with national associations that reminds me of my goals.

As a graduate fellow for the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE), I was given the opportunity to actively engage with others who shared my passion. In doing so, I was able to share my experiences as a young scholar and receive guidance that will be vital in my success. In conjunction with this support, I developed what I am certain will be lifelong partnerships with other future scholars that are just as adamant as I am about Hispanic educational issues. This, I know, will be instrumental in my success as a scholar.

By José Muñoz Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, University of Missouri

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Closing the Education Gap: FINANCE/REPORTS

A Surge in Hispanic College Enrollment

A

by Paul Hoogeveen

stunning 24 percent spike in Hispanic college enrollment has brought young adult Latinos closer than ever to the enrollment levels of other groups, according to a recent report by the Pew Hispanic Center. The rapid surge in enrollment growth is unprecedented – and not just in speed; it has led to a record share of Hispanics in the total number of young adults enrolled in two- or four-year colleges in the United States. It’s a welcome development, given that Hispanic college enrollment has persistently lagged behind that of other groups.

The report, Hispanic College Enrollment Spikes, Narrowing Gaps with Other Groups, authored by Richard Fry, shows that the rapid, one-year surge in Hispanic enrollment surpassed growth in all other groups in the 200910 academic year, and that it contributed greatly to an overall surge in enrollment that led to an all-time high figure of 12.2 million young adults enrolled in two- or four-year colleges in 2010.

Interestingly, it also comes at a time when the Hispanic poverty rate, as measured in the new Supplemental Census Measure, surpassed that of all other groups. (See “Hispanic Poverty Rate Highest In New Supplemental Census Measure,” Nov. 8, 2011, by Pew Hispanic Center.)

To tabulate the reported findings, Fry used the October 2010 Current Population Survey (CPS) for recent enrollment rate data and the U.S. Census for older enrollment estimates. What emerged is a picture of rapid growth in enrollment among minorities in recent years – particularly following the 2008 recession.

Fry found that between 2009 and 2010, enrollment of 18- to-24-year-old Hispanic students increased by 349,000. This brought the number of Hispanics enrolled in college in 2010 to 1.8 million, or 15 percent of the overall enrollment of young adults in two- or fouryear colleges. It’s a historic high for young Latinos both in terms of numbers and share of college students; in fact, in 2010 Latinos became the largest minority group among all college students.

Young adult Hispanics were not alone in

experiencing a surge in enrollment from 2009 to 2010. Black enrollment also expanded by 88,000 for a total of 1.7 million, while 43,000 more young Asian-Americans joined the ranks of two- or four-year college enrollees, bringing their total to about 800,000. Young adult nonHispanic Whites were the only group to show a decrease, down by 320,000 to a total of 7.7 million, making them, in 2010, just 63 percent of all 18- to-24-year-olds enrolled in college. That is the lowest since 1993, when the U.S. Census Bureau first started publishing statistics for the young adult White population segment. (This

trend might be due, at least in part, to a concurrent decrease in the population of White 18- to24-year-olds.)

Among other developments, Fry determined that in 2010, young Hispanics – at a total of 1.8 million – for the first time outnumbered Blacks on college campuses, despite the concurrent surge in Black enrollment. But while this is a historic first and positive development, young Hispanics continue to lag behind their Black peers in two significant measures.

First, while the total number of young Blacks enrolled in college in 2010 – at 1.7 million –

Change in 18- to 24-Year-Old College Enrollment, 2009-2010 All

140,000

White

-320,000

Hispanic

349,000

Black

88,000

Asian

43,000

Notes: White includes only non-Hispanic Whites. All includes persons of other racial and ethnic groups not separately shown.

Source: Pew Hispanic Center analysis of the October 2010 Current Population Survey and U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 1967 to 2009, http://www.census.gov/hhes/school/data/cps/historical/index.html PEW RESEARCH CENTER

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Shareof20-to4-Year2 OldsEmployed, FirstQuarter1967 to SecondQuarter2011

fell behind that of young Hispanics, they continued to show a higher rate of enrollment within their group. Thus, while enrollment of young Black students grew by 6 percent between 2008 and 2010 – a much smaller surge than their Hispanic counterparts showed – a full 38 percent of all young Blacks were enrolled in college in 2010. Meanwhile, despite the impressive 24 percent gain, just 32 percent of all young Hispanics were enrolled in college – slightly less than three in 10.

Second, while Latinos outnumbered Blacks by 200,000 at two-year colleges in 2010, Blacks still outnumbered Hispanics at four-year colleges, albeit at a shrinking rate. In 2010, about 1.1 million young Black students were enrolled in fouryear institutions of higher learning, compared to one million Latino students. This is not entirely surprising, given that Hispanics have tended to enroll with greater frequency at two-year colleges rather than at four-year colleges.

Forces Behind the Surge While growth in the number of young Hispanics is a factor, demographics alone aren’t responsible for the surge, or even the primary factor. As the report indicates, in total, the Hispanic 18- to 24-year-old population increased by only 7 percent from 2009 to 2010.

“They’re narrowing the gap,” said Fry, explaining that a far more important development appears to be at work: Latino educational attainment at the high school level.

80 %

75

Great Recession begins

70 67.8 65 62.8 60 Great Recession ends

55

50 1967

1972

1977

The population of 18- to 24-year-old Hispanics grew by 1.6 million in the past 10 years, according to data Fry took from the October 2010 CPS, compared to an increase of 1.5 million across the entire non-Hispanic college-age population. Therefore, growth in the sheer number of Hispanics, absent any changes in completion rate at the secondary level, contributed at least somewhat to the higher rate of college enrollment. However, a comparison of

90 80

72.7

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 1982

1987

1992

1997

2002

2007 2010

Source: Pew Hispanic Center analysis of the October 2010 Current Population Survey and U.S,Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 1967 to 2009, http://www.census.gov/hhes/school/data/cps/historical/index.html PEW RESEARCH CENTER

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1997

2002

2007

2011

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics seasonally adjusted 20-24 employment to population series

100 %

1977

1987

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Hispanic 18- to 24-Year-Olds Completing High School, 1972-2010

1972

1982

0 1 / 3 0 / 2 0 1 2

population growth in the past 10 years (38 percent) with growth in high school completion (68 percent) shows that population growth alone simply could not account for the enrollment surge. This is apparent considering that the population of young Hispanics in college has more than doubled since the year 2000.

In fact, the report strongly indicates that growth in high school completion, perhaps more than any other factor, was largely responsible for the record college enrollment level. As Fry put it in the report: “Hispanics becoming the nation’s largest minority among young college students was foreshadowed by high school graduation statistics.”

Recent high school completion data clearly bear this out. In 2008, there were 449,000 Hispanic public high school graduates; their Black counterparts numbered fewer at 432,000.

But here again, population growth is not the only or even primary factor. The high school completion rate of Hispanics grew to nearly 73 percent

by October 2010, up three percentage points from the previous year – and completely unrelated to population growth. In addition, Fry said high school graduation projections indicate that in 10 years’ time, Latino high school graduates will outnumber Black high school graduates by a ratio of 2-to-1.

Directly related to the increase in the number of Hispanic high school completers (in other words, young adults newly eligible for college) was a

marked increase in college enrollment of collegeeligible students who had completed high school in 2010. From October 2009 to October 2010, the rate of college-eligible Hispanics enrolled in college grew from 39 percent to 44 percent.

Hispanics make up an ever-increasing share of the young adult population in the United States, according to the report. By October 2010, Hispanics and Blacks represented a full third of the 18- to 24-year-old population. And as several prior studies have shown, both of these minority groups have demonstrated high school completion rates that are below average. Thus, had Hispanic and Black completion rates not improved, one might have expected to see the overall average educational attainment to decline.

But Fry pointed out that the opposite has actually occurred, and U.S. high school completion had reached at its highest level ever in October 2010, at 85 percent of all 18- to 24-year-olds.

College enrollment growth among young Black students, much as with their Hispanic counterparts, was also due largely to a combination of improved high school completion rates and growth in the population of Black young adults. In October 2010, the rate of young Blacks who completed high school hit an alltime high of 83 percent. In the same time period, 2010, 38 percent of Black 18- to 24-yearolds were enrolled in college, another historic high for minorities in higher education. And of those young college-eligible Black adults who completed high school in 2010, 46 percent were enrolled in college. (This is still significantly higher than pre-2009 enrollment rates of around 40 percent, but a fraction less than a historic high of 46.4 percent set in 2009.)

Indirect Factors The report makes the case that other, less direct factors might have contributed to the Hispanic college enrollment surge. These are mostly of an economic or work-related nature, although the conclusions that can be drawn are somewhat open to interpretation, given the limited data available.

In a sluggish economy, reduced labor market opportunity might well play a role in spurring an increased number of young adults to enroll in college. Entering the work force directly out of high school has always been an alternative to higher education, and this is especially true for Hispanics. But the lingering aftermath of the Great Recession has had an ongoing negative impact on labor opportunity for young adults, who continue

18- to 24-Year-Old College Enrollment, by Type of College, 2010 (millions)

White

Hispanic

Black

Asian

7.7

5.6

1.8

2.1

1.7 0.8

Total

0.8

0.6

1.0

1.1

0.2

0.6

4- year

2- year

Notes: White includes only non-Hispanic Whites. Total includes persons of other racial and ethnic groups not separately shown.

Source: Pew Hispanic Center analysis of the October 2010 Current Population Survey PEW RESEARCH CENTER

to show a high rate of unemployment. In March 2011, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate among 18- to 24-year-olds was still running at twice the national average.

Using related Bureau of Labor Statistics data, Fry determined that in the first quarter of 2011, the employment rate for 20- to 24-year-olds had gained a mere third of a percent from a year earlier and stood at just 60.3 percent. Fry’s report posits that this protracted lack of employment opportunity might well have led to a greater share of young adults enrolling in college.

“They figure they might as well go to college and improve their skill set,” surmised Fry. He also speculated that the disproportionate nature of the surge might be due to economic hardship hitting areas of the country that are more heavily populated by Hispanics, leading to a heavier proportion of young Hispanics opting to go to college because of regionally paltry employment opportunities.

The report further argues that young adults and their families are not buying into the notion that because of rising tuition costs and increased student loan debt, higher education is not currently worth the investment. Evidence of this is hinted at in bachelor’s degree attainment trends that are similar to the recent uptick in enrollment; according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), in 2010 the share of all 25- to 29-year-olds that had obtained

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at least a bachelor’s degree hit a historic high of 32 percent. (However, NCES notes in its report The Condition of Education 2011 that most of the growth in bachelor’s attainment occurred prior to the last decade.)

That young adults are not shying away from the long-term cost of a college education might likely be due to the fact that on average, employers continue to pay college-educated young workers about 50 percent more than their peers who have only completed high school. This significant earnings gap emerged in the 1980s, according to the report, and has since stabilized at around 50 percent.

“So, at least in terms of the typical pay of college graduates versus high school graduates, a college education has not lost its luster,” Fry summarized.

Of course, there is a fundamental difference between enrollment and completion. It remains to be seen whether the surge in Hispanic college enrollment will be followed by a surge in two- or four-year degree attainment. As Raúl González, legislative director of the National Council of La Raza, said in reaction to the Pew report: “A spike does not a trend make.”

Nevertheless, positive growth is a positive development – and it’s a far cry from 1972, when just 13 percent of young adult Hispanics were attending college.

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FINANCE

Women Fall Behind in Financial Literacy When

by Michelle Adam it comes to financial news and the media, the stock market and major economic trends typically take center stage. Seldom do we hear as much about financial literacy and how the average American can make informed, financial decisions.

A report published in May by Financial Finesse, a provider of financial education, notes that a low level of financial literacy is especially evident among women, who are significantly behind men in virtually all areas of financial knowledge.

“Women face more financial obstacles than men do. They earn less on average than men, but have significantly longer retirements due to the fact that women live an average of five years longer than men. They also face health care costs throughout their lives,” said Liz Davidson, CEO and founder of Financial Finesse. “To overcome these obstacles, they should be saving more than men and investing their savings more aggressively to get a strong long-term return that will sufficiently grow their portfolios. Instead we see the opposite happening, and this could put women in a dangerous position of not being able to meet their financial needs later in life.”

According to Davidson, the solution to this concern is in providing more resources for women in “schools, more community organizations, and at more companies. It will also require women themselves to change how they think about money.”

While this year’s report revealed that women lag behind men in financial literacy for the second year in a row, there’s hope. The gender gap has begun to narrow across all demographic groups, with women under 30 showing the most improvement. In addition, schools, community organizations, and companies like Financial Finesse are making stronger efforts to educate our citizens on finances.

Are these entities doing enough to make a significant impact? And how much, and in what areas, do women specifically lag behind men in financial literacy?

To answer these and other questions, The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine interviewed Scott Spann, CFP, EA, resident financial planner and a think tank member of Financial Finesse.

The Hispanic Outlook: For how many years have you conducted this financial literacy report?

Scott Spann: We compiled our first report on the gender gap in financial literacy in 2009, as a result of a reporter’s request about how women fared in comparison to men with regard to their personal finance knowledge and confidence. The topic was so popular that we decided to make it a special report as of this year. We released our second report on the gender gap in May of 2011.

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Liz Davidson, CEO and founder, Financial Finesse

HO: Describe the population of your survey and its diversity.

Spann: The data that make up this report come from employees who work for companies that offer our financial education as a free benefit to their employees. Working for an unbiased financial education provider allows us to provide financial planning guidance with no hidden agenda or strings attached. These companies range from Fortune 1000 companies to credit unions and hospitals. We reach over 500,000 employees a year through our different clients, and they’re very diverse. We feel that the companies that partner with us represent a good cross-section of the population in general. Some are factory workers at manufacturing companies and construction workers, others are clerical or office workers, and some

are nurses. We really reach a diverse group of individuals, spanning all ethnicities and income levels.

HO: What were the most important and unique data that came out of this recent report?

Spann: From our latest study in this area, released in May, we found the gender gap was most notable in investing and budgeting. Twenty-five percent of women reported feeling confident with how their investments were allocated compared to 42 percent of men, and only 63 percent of women said

Scott Spann, CFP, EA

they had a handle on their cash flow versus 80 percent of men. The smallest gap was in retirement preparedness, but both women and men are woefully unprepared. Only 12 percent of women and 19 percent of men are confident they will be able to replace 80 percent of their income in retirement. Also interesting was that women and men are participating equally in their employers’ 401(k) or retirement savings plans, with 92 percent of women and 91 percent of men saving, yet women may be investing too conservatively to meet their income needs in retirement. Despite the tremendous progress women have made in the work force over the last several decades, there is still a large gender gap with regard to women’s financial knowledge. For example, we found that 64 percent of women indicated that they have a gen-

eral knowledge of investments compared to 84 percent of the men responding to an online financial planning questionnaire. This may seem like a huge gap, and it is. However, in 2009 only 40 percent of women indicated that they had general investment knowledge in comparison to 73 percent of men, so the gap does appear to be getting somewhat smaller. Education plays a critical role in bridging the knowledge gap because financial knowledge affects positive financial behaviors associated with financial wellness.

HO: How did this year’s data compare to last year’s?

Spann: Well, a general trend we saw was that women were handling their day-to-day finances better than in 2009. Across the board, with the exception of feeling uncomfortable with the amount of nonmortgage debt they had, women reported having a better handle on their cash flow, up 10 percent since 2009; regularly paying their bills on time, up 13 percent from 2009; and having an emergency fund in place, up 14 percent from 2009. Men were also reporting better money management – with a 9 percent increase in having a handle on cash flow, 4 percent increase in paying off debt regularly and 8 percent increase in having an emergency fund in place. On top of it, employees – both men and women – are contributing more to their company-sponsored retirement plans such as a 401(k). Over 90 percent of men and women said they contributed in 2011, 85 percent for women and 86 percent of men in 2009. These are definitely encouraging signs that employees have come out of the recession realizing they need to make some changes to improve their finances, and they’re taking the right steps to doing that. They’re also focusing more on their futures and are saving more. Women stayed the same in their confidence about whether they were on track to meet their retirement income needs, with only 12 percent indicating they are on track to replace at least 80 percent of their income in retirement. In contrast, men as a whole are feeling less confident (23 percent in 2009, 19 percent in 2011) about whether they’re on track to retire with 80 percent of their income.

HO: According to your recent report, younger women are the ones making the greatest improvements in financial literacy. Why do you feel this is so? What is it that these younger women have in their favor today compared to earlier generations of women?

Spann: Great question, but interestingly enough, women of younger generations actually have less in terms of benefits to supplement their financial goals than older generations because. They don’t get generous pensions from their employers and are losing government and employer benefits such as Social Security and health care, which older generations typically had. It’s still too early to tell if women under age 30, who made the most improvements since 2009, will continue this trend of closing the gender gap in financial literacy. But, just as women came out of the Great Depression with an attitude of frugality, women coming out of the Great Recession may be coming out of it with a “roll up your sleeves” kind of attitude toward managing their personal finances.

HO: It seems women have improved their levels at a greater pace than the men when it comes to: paying off credit cards, being uncomfortable with the amount of debt owed, general knowledge of stocks and bonds, and paying bills on time. Yet they feel less confident than men (and have not improved in this area) in their belief that they can replace at least 80 percent of their income in retirement. Why do you feel there is this discrepancy?

Spann: That’s a very interesting question – why are women improving at a faster rate than men in this department, yet seem to be less confident

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they are doing well financially? I think both genders are taking the lessons from the recession – they don’t want to be in the same situation they were in during it, so they’re making moves to improve their situations. Men tend to be overconfident about their finances whereas women tend to be underconfident. I think there is some of this at play here, but what we’ve seen firsthand and believe is a reason women are making changes faster than men is that they are twice as likely to use financial education benefits than men are. This means more women are seeking help with their finances and are also more apt to make the changes stick over the long term.

HO: Why do you feel women struggle a lot more than men with debt and are calling your hotline about this? Does raising children factor into this?

Spann: Women, as I mentioned earlier, already have a tendency to ask for help more than men do, so this may be part of why we get more calls from women. But you bring up raising children on their own – I think I saw a study last year that the number of single women in their 20s having children out of wedlock made up 40 percent of all children born in the U.S. that year. If they’re raising children without financial help, this definitely plays a role in women’s finances. And since they often earn less than men do, there is that to consider as a hurdle, as well managing their finances.

HO: Currently, what kind of financial education exists for women (and men) in school (high school, college or other), in the community, and in the workplace?

Spann: I’m glad you asked that because this is really an issue that needs light to be brought to it. The fact is, though there are some small, organized

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movements around the country for financial education in K-12 schools and even colleges, there hasn’t been much progress made here. I think right now there are about 13 states mandating financial education be taught in high schools, which is a great step forward. But we always say financial education needs to start with the parents – you may have heard this before, but parents prefer to talk to their kids about sex before they talk to them about their finances! This is crazy! Women often play the role as the main caregiver in a home – they need to be equipped to educate their children as well on finances so that we can ensure our future generations are making smart financial decisions. The good news there is that we’re seeing a fastmoving trend toward offering unbiased, financial education in the workplace. It’s a way for employers to help their employees make informed decisions about their benefits, so they can manage them in a way that helps them achieve their financial goals. Rather than just giving employees the information, employers are choosing now to equip employees with education they can use for a lifetime in dealing with their financial decisions.

HO: What still needs to be done to educate more people in financial literacy?

Spann: There is so much that needs to be done. The financial media are talking about this trend, which is called benefits planning – helping employees manage the benefits they have left after losing things like pensions they once counted on for retirement income. This is helping parents who are employees at these companies manage the changes from a tough economy as well. Companies are starting to move away from traditional benefits communication where employees are bombarded with technical information on benefits, and toward holistic benefits planning, which starts with an employees’ financial goals, then looks at how the employee can best manage their benefits to achieve these goals. The way employers and even schools are educating people about finances, however, is not working for women and needs to change in order to meet the needs of men and women alike, without alienating either. As a society, we need to get away from financial transactions and move toward financial planning – helping people establish their key financial goals and work toward those goals by saving sufficiently, investing wisely, and protecting their assets along the way. We need to make finances about people and their families, not just about the market. When we do this, we will engage women at a much deeper, more meaningful level; that’s where you’ll see the biggest changes. It’s already happening. You are seeing financial institutions increasingly shift from a transactional mentality to a more broad-based, financial-planning mentality. There has also been a growth in the number of fee-based financial planners who approach finances holistically. These are all huge steps forward.

HO: What do you see happening for college students across the country regarding financial literacy, and how are Hispanics a part of this?

Spann: Thankfully, financial literacy is finally getting some attention.

College students will probably see it popping up as an option for course credits more and more, and we, of course, encourage everyone to take advantage of any free education they can get in this area. In fact, many colleges are now offering peer-to-peer financial counseling. We are not sure how Hispanic college students, or Hispanic women, are faring in financial literacy because our research has not studied this particular group enough yet. But we do know that if women are more apt to seek and use financial education, they may have a good shot at closing the gender gap – especially since young women under age 30 are showing the fastest rates of improvement.

Interesting Reads Cultural Centers in Higher Education

By Lori D. Patton Black cultural centers have a 40-year history, but until now no one has painted a completely accurate picture about how they developed. Until now, little has been known about their historical roots, current status and future prospects.

2010. 230 pgs. ISBN: 978-1579222321. $27.50 paper.

Stylus Publishing, (703) 661-1504. www.Styluspub.com

The Immigrant Paradox in Children and Adolescents Edited by Cynthia Garcia Coll and Amy Kerivan Marks This volume examines these controversial findings by asking how and why highly acculturated youth might fare worse academically and developmentally than their less assimilated peers, and under what circumstances this pattern is disrupted.

2011. 320 pgs. ISBN: 978-1433810534. $69.95 cloth. American Psychological Society, (800) 374-2721. www.apa.org

Learning a New Land

By Carola Suárez-Orozco, Marcelo M. Suárez-Orozco and Irina Todorova Based on an interdisciplinary study that followed 400 newly arrived children from the Caribbean, China, Central America and Mexico for five years, this book provides an account of the lives, dreams and frustrations of these youngest immigrants.

2010. 440 pgs. ISBN: 978-0674045804 1. $19.95 paper. Harvard University Press, (617) 384-7249. www.harvardeducationpress.org.

Mexican National Identity

By William H. Beezley Mexican National Identity makes an important contribution to the growing body of literature that explores the influences of popular culture on issues of national identity.

It opens new avenues for exploring identity not just in Mexico and Latin American countries but in every nation.

2008. 224 pgs. ISBN: 978-0-8165-2690-1. $24.95 paper. The University of Arizona Press, (520) 621-3920. www.uapress.arizona.edu.

The Havana Habit

by Gustavo Pérez Firmat; 2010 ISBN: 978-0-300-14132-0. $25.00 cloth. 225 pages. Yale University Press, www.yale.edu/yup/. (203) 432-0960.

I

deally a story/book should, besides entertain, either educate, make the reader think about the topic, and/or make the reader want to read more.

The Havana Habit does all four.

The Havana Habit is certainly entertaining, in spite of the fact that it is so obviously written by a college professor who’s careful to use the right terminology, cite every possible reference and thank every source. The illustrations used to explain a point are so much a part of the American experience that we can’t help but smile while remembering I Love Lucy episodes or the Joker in Batman. From a college professor, one expects to be educated, but what a fun education. If you want to know where the Chachachá, Mambo, Conga, Rumba or Daiquiris come from, they all come from Cuba. Firmat has carefully researched and very eloquently explained to us the origin of each and the how and why they became so popular in the United States.

This book, however, goes beyond educating about popular music, dance and drinks. It also gives the reader a lot to think about the relationship between the United States and Cuba. Not the relationship between the governments of each country (although there is some historical explanation of that topic) but rather the relationship between the perception of the United States about Cuban culture and of Cuba fostering that fictional idea on the United States psyche.

Lastly, the book makes one want to revisit some of the books and movies Firmat uses as examples of the fictitious Cuba/Havana lifestyle found in To Have and Have Not, Too Many Girls and Week-End in Havana and which becomes America’s idea of all Latino/Hispanic countries – so that movies taking place in Mexico, Argentina or Brazil have a Rumba or Conga, and all the drug dealers have awful Cuban accents.

If you ever wondered or were annoyed by the fact that in the United States Latinos are often all looked at as if we’re all the same, Firmat argues that it all goes back to Americans’ fascination with all things Cuban (real or imagined). So that a habit was created of seeing all Latinos through the Cuban lens. In his epilogue, he explains how this is, after all, how Cubans see themselves. “For Cubans, it’s all, and always, about us.”

Firmat admits that “this book may be another example of the Cuban inclination to find Cuba in the most unlikely places,” including the movie The Blob. Either way, the book is entertaining, with plenty of food for thought.

Reviewed by Myrka A. González

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New Report on Academic Majors and Earned: How Do Women and Minorities Fare?

FINANCE/REPORTS

With

by Angela Provitera McGlynn

news articles questioning the economic value of a bachelor’s degree in terms of the financial investment made, the Introduction to What’s It Worth? The Economic Value of College Majors (Georgetown University, Center on Education and the Workforce, May 2011) puts those queries to a rest. The short answer is: Yes! Report authors Anthony P. Carnevale, Jeff Strohl and Michelle Melon note that on average, full-time, full-year workers with bachelor’s degrees earn 74 percent more money over a lifetime than their peers with only a high school diploma. With a graduate degree, the gap widens even further.

The more nuanced answer to the economic value question, though, is that some undergraduate majors pay off a lot more than others – in some cases, the difference in earning potential between one major and another can be upwards of 300 percent. Graduate degrees could make a difference of 400 percent to 500 percent.

What’s It Worth? uses United States Census data available for the first time and demonstrates how important choice of major is to students’ median earnings. In Carnevale’s words, “The bottom line is that getting a degree matters, but what you take matters more.”

The report’s analyses are based on newly released data from the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS). For the first time in the ACS, the Census Bureau asked B.A. holders or higher to indicate their undergraduate major. The responses were then coded into 171 degree majors. The second section of the report aggregates all 171 majors into 15 groups. The 15 groupings of majors are: 1.

Agriculture and Natural Resources 2.

Arts 3.

Biology and Life Science 4.

Business 5.

Communications and Journalism 6.

Computers and Mathematics 7.

Education 8.

Engineering 9.

Health 10. Humanities and Liberal Arts 11. Industrial Arts and Consumer Services 12. Law and Public Policy 13. Physical Sciences 14. Psychology and Social Work 15. Social Science The unique aspect of this research is that it analyzed data across an individual’s full life cycle (ages 25 to 64) rather than focusing on recent degree recipients.

The data show that majors are highly segregated by race/ethnicity and gender, with few exceptions. In terms of gender, essentially the findings showed that White men are concentrated in the highest-earning majors, such as Engineering and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Women are concentrated in the lowest-earning majors, including Art, Education and Social Work.

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Further, even women with the higher-paying degrees, as, for example, women in Chemical Engineering, earn on average $20,000 less than similarly educated males.

The highest proportion of women is found in Early Childhood Education (97 percent). This is followed by Medical Assisting Service majors (96 percent) and Communication Disorders Sciences and Services majors (94 percent). Majors in which women are most heavily concentrated are almost exclusively the Education and Health fields.

The highest proportion of men are found in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (97 percent), followed closely by Mechanical Engineering and Related Technologies (94 percent).

The report makes clear that inequities based on race/ethnicity and gender still persist. Within the very same major, African-Americans earn $22,000 less than Whites and $12,000 less than Asian-Americans.

The report also analyzed occupations in terms of ethnic/racial concentrations. The fields with the highest concentration of Whites are Forestry (93 percent), Natural Resources Management (92 percent), and Agriculture Production and Management (92 percent). Asian-Americans are concentrated in Computer majors (33 percent), Statistics and Decision Science (30 percent), and Neuroscience (27 percent).

The highest proportion of African-American B.A. degree holders is found in School Student Counseling (38 percent), Human Services and Community Organization (21 percent) and Counseling Psychology (20 percent).

African-Americans earn the most money in the field of Electrical Engineering, with a median income of $68,000. Whites in the same field earn a median income of $90,000, with Asians at $80,000. At the bottom rung are Hispanics with the same major whose median income is just $60,000.

Earnings discrepancies between Whites and minorities in the same field with the same majors appear pretty much across the board. AfricanAmericans with bachelor’s degrees earn the least with a major in General Medical and Health Services. The median income for African-Americans in this field is $32,000; for Whites, $50,000.

The highest concentrations of Hispanic bachelor’s degree holders are found in Biological Engineering (22 percent), International Business (21 percent) and Social Psychology (19 percent).

Hispanics earn the most with a major in Mechanical Engineering. Their median income in this field is $70,000. Whites with the same major working in the same field earn $83,000. Hispanic B.A. degree holders earn the least with majors in Theology and Religious Vocations – median income is just $30,000. Again, this is less than earnings for Whites and for AfricanAmericans in the field. For majors yielding the highest and lowest median earnings for Hispanics, see the tables in this article.

The top 10 majors in terms of highest median earnings are: 1.

Petroleum Engineer, $120,000 2.

Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration, $105,000 3.

Mathematics and Computer Sciences, $98,000 4.

Aerospace Engineering, $87,000 5.

Chemical Engineering, $86,000

White American Hispanic Asian & Ethnicities Median Median Median Median Median Earnings Earnings Earnings Earnings Earnings

• TOP 10 MAJORS WITH THE HIGHEST MEDIAN EARNINGS FOR HISPANICS**

Mechanical Engineering

83,000

65,000

70,000

70,000

Civil Engineering Management Information Systems and Statistics Computer Science

80,000

•

65,000

72,000

•

AfricanWhite 56,000 American 70,000 Median 61,000 Median 80,000 Earnings Earnings 90,000 68,000 83,000 65,000 51,000 65,000 80,000 95,000

Other Races Hispanic 64,000 Asian & Ethnicities 65,000 Median 75,000 Median Median 62,000 Earnings Earnings Earnings 60,000 80,000 70,000 70,000 60,000 60,000 65,000 72,000 59,000 70,000

65,000 70,000 60,000 80,000 80,000 90,000

59,000 65,000 58,000 62,000 56,000 60,000

65,000 64,000 70,000 75,000 80,000 80,000

* Full-Time, full-year with a terminal Bachelor’s.

65,000 51,000 60,000 Computer andworkers Information Systems - There was a tie for last place, and we are representing some, but not all, of those majors that tied.

95,000 59,000 Chemical Engineering • Sample size was too small to be statistically valid.

60,000

Electrical Engineering Mechanical Engineering Computer and Information Systems Civil Engineering Chemical Engineering Management Information Architecture Systems and Statistics Nursing Computer Science Industrial Manufacturing Engineering Electricaland Engineering

•

•

55,000 56,000 60,000 61,000

•

68,000

•

70,000

Architecture Nursing

65,000 60,000

55,000 60,000

59,000 58,000

65,000 70,000

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

80,000

•

56,000

80,000

• • •• •• • •• 60,000 • •• • • •

60,000

•

* Full-Time, full-year workers with a terminal Bachelor’s.

- There was a tie for last place, and we are representing some, but not all, of those majors that tied.

• Sample size was too small to be statistically valid.

TOP 10 MAJORS WITH THE LOWEST MEDIAN EARNINGS FOR HISPANICS*

Theology and Religious Vocations TOP 10 MAJORS WITH THE Advertising and Public Relations

• • HISPANICS* LOWEST MEDIAN EARNINGS FOR

General Education Social Work Mathematics Physical and Health Education Teaching Theology and Religious Vocations Biology Advertising and Public Relations Psychology General Education Elementary Education Social Work Fine Arts Mathematics * Full-Time, full-year a terminal Bachelor’s.

Physical and workers Healthwith Education Teaching • Sample size was too small to be statistically valid.

Biology

Electrical Psychology Engineering, $85,000

AfricanOther Races White American Hispanic Asian & Ethnicities Median Median Median Median Median Earnings Earnings Earnings Earnings Earnings 38,000 42,000 30,000

6.

7.

Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, $82,000 Elementary Education 8.

Mechanical Engineering, $80,000 Fine Arts 9.

Metallurgical Engineering, $80,000 * Full-Time, full-year workers with a terminal Bachelor’s.

10. Mining and Mineral • Sample sizeEngineering, was too small$80,000 to be statistically valid.

The 10 majors with the lowest median earnings are: 1.

Counseling/Psychology, $29,000 2.

Early Childhood Education, $36,000 3.

Theology and Religious Vocations, $38,000 4.

Human Services and Community Organizations, $38,000 5.

Social Work, $39,000 6.

Drama and Theater Arts, $40,000 7.

Studio Arts, $40,000 8.

Communication Disorders Sciences & Services, $40,000 9.

Visual and Performing Arts, $40,000 10. Health and Medical Preparatory Programs, $40,000

•

• • • • • •• •• 51,000 •• • 45,000 43,000 40,000 42,000 40,000 38,000 50,000 37,000 •• 40,000 40,000 40,000 38,000 40,000 38,000 34,000 •• • 46,000 70,000 38,000 50,000 40,000 40,000 44,000 70,000 •• 47,000 43,000 40,000 • • 52,000 43,000 40,000 51,000 • 45,000 Right 40,000 40,000 50,000 in the middle of the pack in terms of earnings and employment • Liberal Arts40,000 and Humanities majors. These majors make up the 40,000are the 40,000 34,000 • popular40,000 major group.44,000 Liberal Arts and Humanities majors earn 46,000third most 38,000 • usually end up in median incomes of $47,000. Students with these degrees 50,000

42,000

38,000

43,000 White 40,000 Median 70,000 Earnings 47,000 38,000 52,000 50,000

African42,000 American 38,000 Median 50,000 Earnings 43,000 42,000 43,000 42,000

38,000 Hispanic 38,000 Median 40,000 Earnings 40,000 30,000 40,000 38,000

Other Races 37,000 Asian & Ethnicities Median Median 70,000 Earnings Earnings

professional, white-collar, and education occupations. Further, about 40 percent of these earn graduate degrees, and that enhances their earnings by almost 50 percent.

The most popular major was found in some areas of Business. More people who earned bachelor’s degrees majored in Business Management than any other major. There are earnings differences even within groups of similar majors. For example, Business-Economics majors had the highest median pay ($75,000) of all Business majors. The least popular majors are Military Technologies, Soil Science, and Pharmacology, collectively making up less than 1 percent.

The report also looked at the likelihood that a person with a specific major would obtain a graduate degree and the subsequent earnings return of graduate degrees. Majors with the highest rates of graduate degree

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attainment included: School Student Counseling (91 percent), Educational Administration and Supervision (89 percent), and Health and Medical Preparatory Programs (70 percent).

Lowest rates of graduate degree attainment were found in Commercial Art and Graphic Design (9 percent), Communication Technologies (11 percent), and Construction Services (11 percent).

We know that earning a graduate degree leads to higher earnings. What this report shows is that how much additional earnings people make with a graduate degree depends on their undergraduate majors. Those majors that get the biggest increase from a graduate degree are Health and Medical Preparatory Programs at a whopping 190 percent increase, miscellaneous Social Science majors (134 percent), and Zoology (123 percent).

In addition, What’s It Worth looked at how employment rates correlat-

ed with specific majors. It found that unemployment was lowest in the following fields: Geological and Geophysical Engineering, Military Technologies, Pharmacology, and School Student Counseling. Certain majors are also associated with full-time rather than part-time work. They include Genetics at 99 percent full-time employment, and Geological and Geophysical Engineering at 97 percent full-time employment.

Fields with the highest unemployment rates, ranging from 16 percent to 11 percent, included: Social Psychology, Nuclear Engineering, and Educational Administration and Supervision.

As I read this report, two troublesome thoughts occurred to me. Will disseminating this type of information make students and their families choose majors based solely on income earning potential rather than on a love of learning, intellectual curiosity, and what might be labeled vocational callings?

And is a college education only worth it in terms of dollars and cents?

These fears were somewhat assuaged by listening to the lead author, Anthony Carnevale, on National Public Radio’s news program Tell Me Position FA030 More (June 6, 2011). Interviewer Michel Martin John H. Daniel Campus asked Carnevale whether he had any fears about Located in Keysville, VA how the information might be used. Carnevale Southside Virginia Community College invites applications for the position of Provost of the John said he hopes “that this report will be used in H. Daniel Campus, Keysville, Virginia. The College is recognized throughout the Commonwealth ways that make it that other chapter in the colfor the leadership it has provided in the development of innovative programs. Additionally the lege catalogue. After you’ve decided what it is College has received national recognition from The Chronicle of Higher Education which designated Southside Virginia Community College as a “Great Place to Work.” you really want to learn, look to see what kind of Established in 1971, the John H. Daniel Campus of Southside Virginia Community College is career pathway it will send you down, and if that located in a setting featuring rolling hills and majestic pines. Situated in Charlotte County, doesn’t raise issues for you – full speed ahead.”

Virginia, on a 98 acre campus, the location boasts a 57,500 square foot academic complex and a “My fear is that it will, in the end, crowd out Workforce Development Center of about 14,000 square feet. A new, state-of-the-art Learning Resource/Student Center will be completed in 2013. The Campus, enhanced by various offShakespeare. I think that in a panic to make campus centers, has extensive offerings in programs of study and serves the western end of the careers for themselves, people will not pay attenCollege’s ten county service area. We serve primarily the residents of the city of Emporia and the tion to the kinds of personal development that counties of Brunswick, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Greensville, Halifax, Lunenburg, comes from taking ... Humanities, Arts, and other Mecklenburg, Nottoway, and Prince Edward. This represents an area of approximately 4,200 square miles. The College takes pride in its community-based education approach to meeting the courses that are taken more for passion than they needs of service area constituents. are for building pensions.”

The Provost must meet the challenges of building upon past successes while charting new directions.

Carnevale’s advice to students was astute: Important areas of focus must include a comprehensive review of program offerings, curriculum, and “Whatever you do when you go to college, policies and practices; a renewed emphasis on enrollment and retention; raising significant financial resources to supplement state and local budgets and fostering economic development. don’t just focus on getting the degree. Pay some Qualified candidate will have an earned Doctorate, demonstrated successful higher education and attention to where the degree will take you, what academic administrative experience at or above the Dean or Department Chair level or the occupation it will lead you to, what kind of a equivalent. He or she must possess a clear commitment to the comprehensive mission of an career. And if, in the end, you major in the egalitarian community college, educational excellence, technological innovation development and Humanities or the Liberal Arts or other areas workforce training. The demonstrated ability to work with business, industry, government and the community at large. The candidate must have a broad vision for the college together with the skills where there’s no obvious occupation that you’re and energy for its implementation. An appreciation for rural life is also an essential characteristic headed for, plan to go on to graduate school or for the next provost of the Daniel Campus, Southside Virginia Community College. some additional schooling to put an occupationSalary commensurate with education and experience and includes an excellent benefits packet with al point on your educational pencil, something both state and VCCS benefits. To apply, submit a completed State Application, resume, and electronic transcripts through the RMS website at: https://jobs.agencies.virginia.gov. Applicants you can sell in the labor market.” must create an RMS user account to apply. Criminal Background and reference check required.

This seems like sound advice. As an educaThe selected candidate must complete a Statement of Personal Economic Interests as a condition tor, I would add one more suggestion: Pursue in of employment. Review of candidate materials will commence on February 1, 2012. Position will college what you love. Passion for a discipline remain open until filled. can go a long way in motivating students to turn SVCC does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the what they love into “work.” I am reminded of a non-discrimination policies: Peter Hunt, Vice President of Finance and Administration, 109 quotation attributed to many authors, including Campus Drive, Alberta, VA 23821, 434-949-1005. Women, minorities, and those with disabilities Confucius: “Do what you love and you will never are encouraged to apply. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities act (ADA and ADAAA), SVCC will provide, if requested, reasonable work a day in your life.”

PROVOST

accommodation to applicants in need of access to the application, interviewing and selection processes.

SVCC is committed to Diversity, Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action.

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Angela Provitera McGlynn, professor emeritus of psychology, is an author and national consultant/presenter on teaching and learning.

HI S PAN I C S O N T H E MO VE Laura Romo, associate professor of education at the University of California-Santa Barbara (UCSB), is the new director of the campus’ Chicano Studies Institute. A leading researcher in the areas of adolescent development, parent-adolescent communication, and informal health education, Romo replaced Carl Gutiérrez-Jones, professor of English at UCSB, who held the position for the past six years. Romo received her Ph.D. in psychology from UCLA, and joined the UCSB faculty in 2003.

UNM VP Torres Honored with Ohtli Award Dr. Eliseo “Cheo” Torres, University of New Mexico vice president for student affairs, was recognized with the 2011 Ohtli award at a celebration of Mexico’s Independence in September in Santa Fe, N.M. The award is given yearly by the government of Mexico to individuals who promote the wellbeing of Mexicans living in the U.S. According to Mauricio Ibarra, consul of Mexico, Torres was chosen because of his role as former adviser to the Institute of Mexicans Abroad (IME) and as a recognized promoter of the Mexican community in Albuquerque.

Izquierdo and Quiroga Join Broward College Management Team Broward College (Fla.) recently added two individuals to its management team.

Cardinalli-Padilla Performs at Eastern Connecticut State University

Aileen Izquierdo (pictured l.) joined the college as the first vice president for public affairs and marketing. She previously served as vice president for communications and marketing at Florida Atlantic University and also worked in the media relations department at Florida International University. Dr. Mercedes Quiroga (r.) was named campus president for the A. Hugh Adams Central Campus. Quiroga came to Broward from Miami Dade College (MDC), where she served for more than 20 years in a variety of positions including, most recently, president of MDC’s Wolfson Campus.

Anna María Cardinalli-Padilla, classical flamenco guitarist and accomplished scholar, recently shared her passion for the richness of Latino culture at Eastern Connecticut State University.

Cardinalli-Padilla is a professor of intelligence and national security studies at American Military University. She completed her bachelor’s degree summa cum laude at St. Mary’s College of California at age 18, her master’s degree at St. John’s College at 20, and she became the youngest person to receive a Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame, at the age of 25.

Sánchez Honored with Children’s Book Award at Texas State Alex Sánchez’s young adult novel Bait, which depicts the emotional journey of a troubled 16-year-old boy, was named the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award recipient for works published in 2009-10. Sánchez, who has a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from Old Dominion University, was honored in October during a series of events on the Texas State University campus and at the Texas Book Festival in Austin.

Photo © Bill Hitz

Romo Directing UCSB Chicano Studies Institute

FULL TIME, TENURE TRACK A MERICAN SIGN AMERICAN LANGUAGE IINSTRUCTOR NSTRUCTOR LANGUAGE

Pérez Researches Sustainable Tourism in Cuba

CClose: lose: 2/16/12

CCOUNSELOR OUNSELOR

Ricardo Pérez, professor of anthropology at Eastern Connecticut State University, recently was invited to lecture in Cuba at the University of Havana’s Department of Tourism Studies.

Pérez has an interest in the intersection of tourism and ecology in Cuba and has been conducting field research on the topic since visiting the island’s northern coast in 2005. He is now preparing to write a book based on his research over the past six years.

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CClose: lose: 2/16/12

MATHEMATICS M ATHEMA HEMATTICS IINSTRUCTOR NSTRUCTOR CClose: lose: 2/23/12

PPSYCHOLOGY SYCHOLOGY IINSTRUCTOR NSTRUCTOR CClose: lose: 3/12/12 COMING COMING SOON:

SOCIOLOGY INSTRUCTOR INSTRUCTOR For complete job announcements and District applications, please call (831) 645-1341 or visit:

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HIGH SCHOOL FORUM

Hispanic High School and College Success: It’s Not a Man’s World

It’s

by Mary Ann Cooper the elephant in the room – the disparity in achievement between Latinos and Latinas in high school and postsecondary education. It shows up in every study and survey of graduation rates and dropout statistics. The College Board released a study in 2011 that separates minority males from minority females in an effort to get at the gender discrepancy and make recommendations about how to address the needs and concerns of minority males.

In a report from the College Board titled The Educational Experience of Young Men of Color: A Review of Research, Pathways and Progress, by John Michael Lee Jr. and Tafaya Ransom, the authors conclude that in order to analyze the depth and severity of the shrinking minority male presence in education, data need to be disaggregated not only by race and ethnicity, but by gender as well. So while minority students made up a disproportionate share of the “below basic” scorers on the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the numbers would be even worse if minority female scores were taken out of the mix. For instance, minority males fare far worse than their female counterparts in reading. In math, Hispanic males edge out Hispanic females, but not by a wide margin. It does also make a big difference to aggregate males by country of birth and ethnicity. The report explains, “Latino males have consistently been more likely to drop out of high school than males of other ethnic groups (Robert A. Soza, Pathways to Prevention: The Latino Male Dropout Crisis. Tempe. 2007; Richard Fry, The Changing Pathways of Latino Youths into Adulthood. Washington, D.C.: Pew Hispanic Center, 2009). However, disaggregating Latino dropout rates by country of birth and/or ethnicity reveals the nuance embedded in the overall figures. For example, Fry reported a 2007 high school dropout rate for U.S.-born, 16- to 25-year-old Hispanic males of 12 percent, while foreign-born Hispanic males had a 37 percent dropout rate. Similarly, in 2007, the status dropout rate of ethnic Salvadoran males (26 percent) was more than four times the dropout

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rate of Cuban males (6 percent).”

Young African-American, Latino and Native American males in high school share many poor academic traits. They include low academic achievement, high grade-level repetition, high dropout rates, and overpopulation in special education programs. One of the common causes of these problems, according to the College Board study, is what they cite as “both a lack of support from family and a lack of community support and resources.” The singling out of male students of color reveals a previously hidden education crisis for this demographic group. As of 2008, a survey in the College Board study of high school students ages 15 to 24 showed a large gap between all males, in particular minority males, and their higher-achieving female counterparts in college access, educational attainment, and employment.

In their study The Vanishing Latino Male in Higher Education, published in the Journal of Hispanic Higher Education (2009), authors Sáenz and Ponjuan explain that gender differences that create the gap between Hispanic males and Hispanic females in higher education, both in numbers and achievement, begin as early as preschool, as cultural and gender norms in Hispanic communities steer Hispanic males toward alternate social and career paths. They say the gap between Hispanic males and Hispanic females in higher education is most evident at ages 18 and 19, the time when high school students are making the changeover to higher education.

Drilling down the data, there is evidence that certain groups of Hispanics exhibited more of gender gap than others. Data from the Freshman Survey of the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) has shown that MexicanAmericans have the most pronounced enrollment gender gap at four-year institutions.

What social factors are contributing to that gap? While much has been written and said about gender pressure in Hispanic households that downplay the importance of higher education for Latinas, less has been said about the familial pressure Latinos are under to financially support the family and hasten their entry into the work force.

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An article, “Psychological Coping and WellBeing of Male Latino Undergraduates: ‘Sobreviviendo la Universidad,’” published in the Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences (2009), cites a higher education atmosphere that Latino males perceive as one that can foster feelings of being a cultural misfit and undermine a strong sense of self. The article also cites a lack of mentors as part of the enrollment and achievement problem among Hispanics. There is a persistent lack of a sense of “belonging” for Hispanic males entering some higher education societies.

In the 2008 study Factors Influencing the Ethnic Identity Development of Latino Fraternity Members at a Hispanic-Serving Institution, published in The Journal of College Student Development, authors Guardia and Evans explored how fraternal associations at Hispanic-Serving Institutions affected Latino enrollment and retention in higher education.

They found that these organizations enhanced the higher education experience for Latinos because they promoted ethnic identity and a sense of belonging to the community.

At a Latino male symposium at the University of Texas-Austin, Dr. Víctor Sáenz, who created and heads Project MALES, sponsor of the event, addressed the disappointing numbers of Hispanic males completing higher education degrees, and the lack of mentoring for this demographic in a state in which 38 percent of the population is Hispanic. As Sáenz notes, “In states like Texas, demographics is destiny.” But that destiny is tied to a community and family support system. In speaking about Project MALES, a joint effort between the University of Texas-Austin and South Texas College, Sáenz announced that a new pilot mentoring project was recently launched to train Latino male college students to be mentors to middle school and high school Latino youth in the Austin area.

Dr. Luis Ponjuan, an assistant professor in education at the University of Florida, and Sáenz’s co-author of the 2009 The Vanishing Latino Male in Higher Education study, further demonstrated the urgent need to encourage more Latinos to complete high school and enter

higher education. “I have some very sobering statistics. Right now around one out of every four kindergartners is Latino. About 20 percent of Latino boys drop out of high school – that’s one in five of our boys becoming a dropout.

Only 73 percent of Latino boys are getting high school degrees. We’re looking at major failings in the education pipeline, especially at transition points such as between high school and commu-

nity college or a four-year university or between middle school and high school. The problem is exacerbated in grades K-12 – because Latino children often attend schools that are underfunded, have underprepared teachers, suffer high teacher turnover and have inexperienced administrators as leaders in the schools.”

Ignoring “the elephant in the room” will have disastrous impact on an already fragile economy

in the future, says Ponjuan. It is not merely a social crisis we face, but a monetary one as well.

We are in danger of creating a permanent, large underclass of Latino males. Many of them will be born into poverty and stay there for life.

According to Ponjuan, “For all too many Latino men, life options are limited to extreme poverty, prison, social welfare programs and death.”

Theory into Practice Improving the performance of men of color in high school and higher education takes a multiprong approach. It must be addressed from a societal, familial, and institutional perspective. Here are some recommendations from the College Board as detailed in its report, The Educational Experience of Young Men of Color: A Review of Research, Pathways and Progress.

Recommendation 1: When dealing with a national issue involving millions of moving parts (i.e., students), those in charge of coming up workable solutions sometimes develop one-size-fits-all generic solutions. This will not work with the myriad issues that face men of color as they navigate their way through high school and college. Issues that hamper Hispanic academic success are not necessarily the same issues stifling African-American success. And although the goal is to raise success levels among men of color to be competitive with success levels among women off color, there should be recognition that women of color shouldn’t have resources taken from them or be ignored as new programs are introduced for men of color. The White House points to its White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics as one of the ways it is attempting to deal with this issue.

Recommendation 2: The study advises policy makers to remind communities, businesses and schools that they are all in this together. It is in everyone’s best interest that men of color succeed academically since people of color are a burgeoning part of the population, now and in years to come. The study encourages partnerships among these three societal entities that would provide “incentives/rewards for children of employees who do well in school, releasing parents to attend teacher conferences, and providing mentors for students in both K-12 and higher education.” Community leaders should also create mentoring programs for students who need support and encouragement.

Recommendation 3: The study also encourages education reform that would put in place programs to make young men of color college and career ready upon completion of high school. Raising high school graduation rates without making sure they can handle college work or be ready to compete in the workplace is kicking the can down the road, and postponing inevitable disappointment. Schools are encouraged to enlist the help of parents as well as the government and community to enact reform measures.

Recommendation 4: Since men of color have been singled out for improvement, teacher education programs must recognize and acknowledge that curricula must include cultural and gender responsive training for school personnel. According to the study, “This training should include culturally responsive instruction, diversity training, and training in college and career readiness for all teachers and counselors. Student-centered approaches should improve outcomes for young men of color; these approaches should include academic and personal mentoring, personal counseling, positive role models and culturally based programs.” Schools should also seek to increase their number of male teachers so that male students, in particular men of color, can have mentors who can guide them through high school, but also help them transition into college or a career choice.

Recommendation 5: Colleges should not become complacent about their role in recruiting, retaining, and graduating men of color. High schools can do their share in preparing students for college, but once they are there, colleges have a vital role in keeping them there and helping them to succeed. According to the study, “Higher education institutions must have an institutional commitment to diversity, and they must be intentional in their commitment by devoting time, attention and the required resources. Also, there must be constant engagement and active participation by everyone – faculty, student affairs professionals, staff, administrators and students.”

Recommendation 6: The study concludes that the issues that face men of color are ever changing and evolving. What might have been an issue last year can morph into an entirely different challenge today. The study recommends that more research and studies need to be conducted to stay current. And rather than just conduct studies that identify “the elephant in the room,” ongoing research should function on creating and testing solutions.

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The Hispanic Outlook In Higher Education

www.hispanicoutlook.com

Pew Hispanic Center Releases Report on Unauthorized Immigrants WASHINGTON, D.C.

Nearly two-thirds of the 10.2 million unauthorized adult immigrants in the United States have lived in this country for at least 10 years, and nearly half are parents of minor children, according to new estimates by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center.

These estimates are based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s March 2010 Current Population Survey, augmented with the center’s analysis of the demographic characteristics of the unauthorized immigrant population using a “residual estimation methodology” that the center has employed for many years.

The characteristics of this population have become a source of renewed interest in the wake of former House Speaker Newt

NCES Releases New Data on Postsecondary Employees and Salaries WASHINGTON, D.C.

While adjusted nine-month average salaries for professors at degree-granting public four-year institutions have increased from 2004-05 to 2010-11 (adjusted for inflation) for both men and women, the adjusted nine-month average salaries (adjusted for inflation) for their counterparts at degree-granting two-year public institutions have decreased for both men and women from 2004-05 to 2010-11, according to new data released by the National Center for Education Statistics.

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Gingrich’s recent endorsement of a proposal to create a path for unauthorized immigrants to gain legal status if they have lived in the country for a long period of time; have children in the U.S.; pay taxes and belong to a church. Several of Gingrich’s opponents for the Republican presidential nomination have criticized the proposal as a form of amnesty that would encourage more immigrants to come to the U.S. illegally.

The Pew Hispanic analysis finds that 35 percent of unauthorized adult immigrants have resided in the U.S. for 15 years or more; 28 percent, for 10 to 14 years; 22 percent, for five to nine years; and 15 percent, for less than five years. The center’s analysis also finds that the share that has been in the country at least 15 years has more than doubled since 2000, when about one in six (16 percent) unauthorized adult immigrants had lived here for that duration.

By the same token, the share of unautho-

rized adult immigrants who have lived in the country for less than five years has fallen by half during this period – from 32 percent in 2000 to 15 percent in 2010.

The rising share of unauthorized immigrants who have been in the U.S. for a long duration reflects the fact that the sharpest growth in this population occurred during the late 1990s and early 2000s – and that the inflow has slowed down significantly in recent years, as the U.S. economy has sputtered and border enforcement has tightened. It also reflects the fact that relatively few long-duration unauthorized immigrants have returned to their countries of origin.

The Pew Hispanic analysis also finds that nearly half (46 percent) of unauthorized adult immigrants today - about 4.7 million people - are parents of minor children. By contrast, just 38 percent of legal immigrant adults and 29 percent of U.S.-born adults are parents of minor children.

Employees in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2010, and Salaries of Full-Time Instructional Staff, 2010-11 presents data from the Winter 2010-11 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, including data on the number of staff employed in Title IV postsecondary institutions in fall 2010 by occupation, length of contract/teaching period, employment status, salary class, faculty and tenure status, academic rank, and gender.

Other findings include: • Institutions reported employing approximately 3.9 million individuals in fall 2010; of the 3.9 million individuals, about 2.5 million were reported to be employed full time and about 1.4 million were reported to be employed part time

• Of the nearly 594,000 reported instructional staff, 154,000 were professors, 129,000 were associate professors, 132,000 were assistant professors, 98,400 were instructors, and 29,600 were lecturers; the remaining 50,900 instructional staff had no academic rank • Compared with fall 2004, the number of instructional staff reported to be employed at degree-granting institutions (excluding administrative offices and medical schools) in fall 2010 increased from approximately 1.1 million to about 1.3 million; during this same time period, the proportion of these instructional staff classified as full time decreased from 49 percent to 45 percent.

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The Hispanic Outlook In Higher Education

Study Shows College Retention Rates Improved by Targeting Students Receiving Pell Grants for Supplemental State Aid WASHINGTON, D.C.

Strategically targeted need-based financial aid dollars could improve higher education student retention rates – increasing chances of a student graduating from college, according to a study conducted for the Louisiana Board of Regents.

Authored by the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and Noel-Levitz, the study found that targeting supplemental financial aid to students receiving Pell Grants in Louisiana improved retention rates by more than 14 percent.

The study examines financial aid policies and approaches affecting four-year public

Fewer States Requiring Students to Pass State High School Exit Exams, Study Finds WASHINGTON, D.C.

For the first time in six years, the number of states requiring students to pass high school exit exams to earn a diploma has gone down, according to the 10th annual report on high school exams and other assessments by the Center on Education Policy (CEP). But more than half the states are preparing for new assessments aligned with the Common Core State Standards and more than one-fourth are offering collegeand career-readiness assessments, the report finds.

www.hispanicoutlook.com

January 30, 2012

institutions in the state of Louisiana. Key findings include: • Pell Grants improve retention rates for those students who are the most at-risk • Pell Grants help overcome differences in retention rates across income levels among students with equivalent academic preparation • When Pell Grants are coupled with Louisiana’s GO Grants – which help nontraditional and low- to moderate-income students who need financial assistance to afford college – student retention rates improve by 14 percent compared with students receiving Pell Grants alone • Increasing GO Grants up to $4,000 and targeting the aid to students with weak overall financial aid awards could increase Louisiana’s retention rates, while saving the state hundreds of thousands of dollars annually “With public funding for financial aid facing constraints at both the state and fed-

eral levels, there is heightened interest in the question: How do strategies allocating financial aid affect student retention and completion?” the authors write.

“The study strongly suggests that raising aid levels from state programs to students receiving Pell Grants would increase retention rates and save Louisiana money. This is an approach with potential application in states throughout the country,” said co-author Mark Schneider, an AIR vice president who has conducted extensive research on the cost of college dropouts to taxpayers and communities.

The financial aid study was based on 37,251 full-time student records during the fall terms of 2006, 2007 and 2008 from Louisiana’s public statewide and regional four-year universities and was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The full report is available on the AIR website, www.air.org.

Twenty-five states have or plan to implement policies that require students to pass an exit exam to receive a high school diploma – three fewer states than in 2010, according to the CEP report. An additional six states have or plan to put in place high school exit exams but do not require students to meet a minimum passing standard on those exams to graduate.

During the past 19 months, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee have changed their policies so that students no longer have to pass an exam to receive a diploma.

Instead, a student’s exit exam score now counts as a percentage of the student’s final grade in a course required for graduation.

Alabama will also make this change in 2015. “Some states are lowering the stakes

attached to their high school exit exams,” said Shelby McIntosh, CEP research associate and author of the report, “a trend that could certainly catch on in other states.”

State High School Tests: Changes in State Policies and the Impact of the College and Career Readiness Movement,based on a survey of state department of education personnel in the summer of 2011, provides an overview of state policies on high school exit exams, college entrance exams (such as the ACT or SAT), and tests of students’ readiness for college and a career.

The report can be accessed free of charge at www.cep-dc.org.

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Making Room at the Table...

The L.I.V.E. Symposium (Learning, Inclusion, Vitality, Exploration)

March 14–17, 2012

Faculty Positions

Nazareth College, an independent, comprehensive institution with 2000 undergraduate and 1200 graduate students, prepares its graduates to serve local and global communities through a wide range of liberal arts and professional programs. Nazareth seeks to hire teacherscholars with a demonstrated commitment to excellent teaching, student success, and civic engagement, and an understanding of the educational benefits of ethnic and racial diversity in the campus community. The college is located minutes from downtown Rochester, New York, a city noted for its rich arts and cultural community and its international businesses and industry. Applications from candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged.

For complete job opening details, please visit our website at www.naz.edu. EOE. Art Department: Full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor of graphic design. The deadline for submission is February 10, 2012. Search Committee Chair: Cathy Kirby, ckirby1@naz.edu

Inclusive Childhood Education: Clinical Faculty Position in early childhood/childhood education.

Deadline for submission is February 1, 2012. Contact Dr. Kate DaBoll-Lavoie kdaboll9@naz.edu Music Department: Instrumental Area Coordinator (Tenure-track, Assistant Professor). Deadline for consideration: February 1, 2012. Contact Dana Harissis, dhariss7@naz.edu

Nursing Department: Clinical or Tenure Track Assistant Professor. The deadline for submission is March 1, 2012.

Search Committee Chair: Dr. Maureen Friedman, mfriedm9@naz.edu Occupational Therapy Department: Clinical Faculty/ Academic Fieldwork Coordinator appointment (12 month)in BS/MS Program, Occupational Therapy.

Curriculum vitae and contacts for three professional references to: Linda Shriber, Ed.D, OTR/L, ldudeks4@naz.edu, Chairperson. Applications will be reviewed beginning Feb. 1, 2012 and will be accepted up to March 16, 2012.

Explore Vocation in a Multicultural World To register, or learn more, visit www.ptsem.edu, click on the “Admissions” drop-down menu and select “L.I.V.E. Symposium.”

Office of Multicultural Relations, Princeton Theological Seminary 1.800.622.6767, ext. 1941, multicultural@ptsem.edu

1812–2012

Celebrating Two Centuries of Service

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Physical Therapy Department: Full-time, 9-month tenure track faculty position. Qualified candidates should send a letter of intent, curriculum vitae, and the names of 3 references by February 1 to: Marcia Miller Spoto, PT, DC, OCS via e-mail mspoto7@naz.edu, (phone 585-389-2903) or by mail to Nazareth College, 4245 East Avenue, Rochester, New York 14618-3790.

Psychology Department: Tenure Track, Assistant Professor with expertise in general experimental psychology with an emphasis on Social/Personality and ability to teach courses in Statistics and Experimental Design, Abnormal, and Introduction to Psychology.

Interested candidates should submit a curriculum vitae, statements of teaching and research and three letters of reference to: Tim Bockes, PhD, tbockes1@naz.edu.

The deadline for submission is January 20, 2012.

Theatre Arts Department: Tenure Track, Assistant Professor of Dance, to develop and administer a new BS in Dance and to support a thriving Musical Theatre program. Send application, resume, digital performance samples, all transcripts and names/addresses/telephone numbers of three references on or before February 1, 2012, to Professor Yuanting Zhao, yzhao5@naz.edu

Dean of the School of Social Work Wayne State University is seeking the next dean of the School of Social Work.

Founded in 1868, Wayne State University is a nationally recognized metropolitan research institution that offers more than 370 academic programs to over 30,000 students. Located in midtown Detroit, Wayne State’s main campus consists of 102 buildings which span over 200 acres, and its five extension centers offer higher education to people throughout Southeast Michigan. The 13 schools and colleges at the university include the School of Business Administration; the College of Education; the College of Engineering; the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts; the Graduate School; the Irvin D. Reid Honors College; the Law School; the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; the School of Library and Information Science; the School of Medicine; the College of Nursing; the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences; and the School of Social Work. Annual research expenditures for the university exceed $250 million.

For the past 76 years the Wayne State University School of Social Work has prepared ethical and competent social work practitioners to promote social, cultural and economic justice for the betterment of poor, vulnerable, and oppressed individuals, families, groups, communities, organizations, and society. The School of Social Work offers Bachelor of Social Work, Master of Social Work, and Ph. D. in Social Work degrees, with students enrolled across the three degree programs; in addition, the School has five graduate certificate programs and a continuing education program. The SSW is also home to the Center for Social Work Practice and Policy Research. There are 22 full-time faculty and 6 academic staff, and 16 administrative and support staff members. As of the Fall 2011 term, there were 942 students enrolled (702 graduate students, 240 undergraduates).

Reporting to the provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, the dean is the chief academic and administrative officer. The successful candidate will be expected to provide visionary leadership for the School’s academic and research programs including budget management, faculty recruitment and resource development. The candidate should be able to build bridges and encourage interdisciplinary scholarship.

The successful candidate will have strong administrative skills, preferably developed in a large, complex environment; the ability to raise funds effectively and develop resources; and excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

This individual also should have a commitment to diversity consistent with the university’s mission as an urban public research institution. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. or equivalent terminal degree from an accredited institution (MSW not required) and have a record of teaching and scholarly or professional attainment that merits appointment as a professor with tenure. For additional information on Wayne State University, please visit: http://wayne.edu/.

Initial screening of applicants will begin by January 23, 2012, and continue until the position is filled. Inquiries, nominations and applications should be directed to the address below. Nominations of qualified candidates are encouraged. Candidates should include a curriculum vitae and letter of interest (electronic submissions preferred).

Dean Jerry Herron Chair, Social Work Dean Search Irvin D. Reid Honors College Wayne State University Detroit, MI 48202 swds@wayne.edu Wayne State University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity employer, which complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. Wayne State University is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination and equal opportunity for all persons regardless of race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

F

ounded in 1956, the University of South Florida is a public research university of growing national distinction. The USF System is comprised of member institutions; USF Tampa, the doctoral granting institution which includes USF Health; USF St. Petersburg; USF Sarasota-Manatee; USF Polytechnic, located in Lakeland, separately accredited by the Commission Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). USF is one of only four Florida public universities classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in the top tier of research universities. More than 47,000 students are studying on USF campuses and the University offers 228 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate, specialty and doctoral levels, including the doctor of medicine. USF is a member of the Big East Athletic Conference. And, USF is listed in the Princeton Review as one of the nation’s 50 “Best Value” public colleges and universities.

The university is currently recruiting for the following positions; the number in parentheses represents the number of positions available to that specific title:

Administrative Positions:

Associate Vice President & Executive Director (Alumni Association) Director of Housing Facilities (Student Affairs) Director of Development (University Advancement) Director of Development (Health Development)

Faculty Positions: College of Arts and Sciences

Engineering

Assistant/Associate Professor (1) Assistant Professor (5)

Assistant Professor (6) Assistant/Associate Professor (1)

College of Medicine

Business

Associate Dean (1) Assistant Professor (6) Assistant/Associate Professor (2) Neurosurgeon (1) Associate Professor (1)

Assistant/Associate Professor (2) Dean (1) Associate/Full Professor (1) Director/Professor (1)

Education

Assistant/Associate Professor (1) Assistant Professor (6)

Dean (1)

College of Arts

Public Health

Associate Professor (1)

Assistant/Associate Professor (1)

Sarasota

Assistant Professor (1) Assistant/Associate Professor (1)

Assistant/Associate Professor (1) Nursing Faculty (3)

St. Petersburg Campus

Academic Affairs

Pharmacy

Associate/Full Professor (1)

College of Nursing

Director/Faculty Administrator (1) Associate Professor (1)

Lakeland

Associate/Full Professor (1)

For a job description on the above listed positions including department, disciple and deadline dates: (1) visit our Careers@USF Web site at https://employment.usf.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/Welcome_css.jsp; or (2) contact The Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity, (813) 974-4373; or (3) call USF job line at 813.974.2879.

USF is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action institution, committed to excellence through diversity in education and employment. www.usf.edu • 4202 E. Fowler Ave,Tampa, FL 33620 01/30/2012

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PROVOST AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Oklahoma City University seeks a Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs to provide dynamic and innovative leadership for academic programs, student recruitment and retention, and faculty development.

The successful candidate will hold an earned doctorate in a discipline associated with the university and a distinguished record of academic accomplishment in teaching, scholarship, service, and administration in higher education. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs reports to the president and serves as the university’s chief academic officer providing leadership and oversight for all schools and colleges of Oklahoma City University, several academic support offices, and enrollment services.

A private liberal arts institution founded in 1904 and affiliated with the United Methodist Church, Oklahoma City University offers more than 60 undergraduate majors and 12 graduate degree programs, with professional schools in law, business, nursing, dance/arts management, music, and theatre. Recognized for providing a personalized experience, small class sizes, and distinguished faculty, the university’s 104-acre, park-like campus is located near downtown Oklahoma City and serves a diverse student body of approximately 3,800 students. Oklahoma City is a dynamic metropolitan area that has recently experienced a renaissance in the arts, culture, and entertainment.

Additionally, Oklahoma’s capital city boasts one of the strongest economies in the U.S., with industry in energy, healthcare, and aerospace.

Interested applicants are encouraged to visit our search website http://www.okcu.edu/provostsearch for additional information and application instructions.

The review of candidate materials will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Nominations or inquiries may be directed to: Dr. Amy Cataldi Chair, Provost/VPAA Search Committee C/O Human Resources Oklahoma City University 2501 N. Blackwelder Avenue Oklahoma City, OK 73106 t BDBUBMEJ!PLDV FEV okcu.edu/provostsearch Oklahoma City University is an equal opportunity employer and affirms the values and goals of diversity. UA01612

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JobOpportunities in Higher Education Covering:

Hispanic/Job Opportunities/College Education/Diversity/Affirmative Action/College Rankings/ Scholarship Information/Teaching Information/ Administration Positions/Faculty Positions/College Fairs/ Book Reviews/ Hispanic Careers/ Success leadership/Conferences/Hispanic Faculty/Student Recruitment SEARCH

Call for Info. on Web Advertising!

201-587-8800 ext. 102-106

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Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs Kean, a comprehensive New Jersey state University, is committed to excellence and access and to developing, maintaining and strengthening interactive ties with the community. Kean University takes pride in its continuing effort to build a multicultural professional community to serve a richly diversified student population of almost 16,000. The University sits on three adjoining campus sites covering 180 acres, two miles from Newark Liberty International Airport and thirty minutes from New York City.

Kean is seeking a well qualified and committed individual to fill the position of Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. The Associate Vice President will support and assist the Vice President for Academic Affairs in the leadership, management and day-to-day oversight of the Division of Academic Affairs, consisting of six colleges, the University Library and several academic support units. The Associate Vice President exercises direct managerial oversight of the University’s major academic student support efforts, including the Center for Academic Success, the Educational Opportunities Center and the University Library; oversees budgetary operations for the Division; coordinates the University’s assessment and honors programs and relationships with accrediting bodies; assists the Vice President with the management and development of Divisionwide policies and procedures; and performs additional duties as required.

Qualifications: Graduation from an accredited college with a Master’s degree and a minimum of six years of professional experience in higher education or a similar organization required. A minimum of three years of the required experience must be in administration. Doctorate degree is preferred and can be substituted for one year of the required experience. Candidate must have excellent writing and analytical skills and a record of academic and administrative accomplishment commensurate with appointment to a high level administrative position in a large and growing university.

Application: Please send letter of application, resume and contact information for three professional references to: Search Committee Chairperson, Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Kean University, 1000 Morris Avenue, Union, NJ 07083 or email vpaa@kean.edu. Review of applications will begin on February 8, 2012 and continue until an appointment is made. Salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Official transcripts for all degrees and three current letters of recommendation are required before appointment.

Kean University is an EOE/AA Institution

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The University of North Carolina (UNC) at Asheville Department of Foreign Languages Chair of Department of Foreign Languages, Associate or Full Professor General Information The University of North Carolina (UNC) at Asheville, located in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Western North Carolina, is the designated liberal arts institution in the UNC public university system. The successful candidate will join a vibrant community of dedicated teacher/scholars in one of the nation’s top-ranked public liberal arts universities. We value interdisciplinary programming and diversity in the liberal arts.

All departments at UNC Asheville contribute to the university-wide Integrative Liberal Studies program (our interdisciplinary liberal arts curriculum required of all undergraduates, including introductory (freshman) colloquia, writing and quantitative intensives, and other interdisciplinary courses). In addition, all faculty advise undergraduate students and develop an active research program that typically includes opportunities for undergraduate research.

Brief Description of the Position We are seeking applicants for a tenure-track faculty member to serve as Chair of the Department of Foreign Languages, which has 12 full-time faculty, 2 part-time faculty, and one office support staff. Currently the department teaches Spanish, French, German and Portuguese, offering majors in the first three; however, the department has begun to consider curriculum revisions in response to enrollment trends, student graduation rates and budget limitations. A successful candidate will be able to lead through this transition with vision and commitment, teach undergraduate language and culture courses, and infuse the undergraduate experience with the skills, aptitudes and values of the interdisciplinary liberal arts.

As UNC Asheville is committed to diversity and inclusion, the successful candidate will demonstrate ability to foster a work environment that encourages knowledge of, respect for, and ability to engage with those of diverse races, ethnicities, cultures and backgrounds. The candidate should also possess knowledge and understanding of diversity and inclusion issues, and their applications to pedagogy, curriculum, programming, service activity, and student and faculty success.

Qualifications Required for the Position • Successful record chairing a department of foreign languages • Doctoral degree and experience commensurate with prospective rank of hire • Native or near native competence in one of the current languages of instruction and a solid knowledge of English • Area of specialization open with preference given to candidates with experience in more than one language of instruction • Evidence of excellence in teaching and a strong scholarly record • A demonstrated commitment to diversifying faculty, curriculum and programming

Candidates with the following areas of secondary professional, scholarly and creative expertise are especially encouraged to apply: language practice and ethnicity or gender, cultural representation, linguistics and cultural identity, language and political history, indigenous literatures, and related fields.

Salary and Starting Date Salary is competitive and commensurate with education and experience. Anticipated start date is July 2012. Applications will be reviewed until position is filled.

Application The initial application should consist of a cover letter, current curriculum vita, statement of administrative and teaching philosophies, three letters of reference appropriate to the criteria for the position and teaching evaluations, if available.

Send materials via email to Dr. Jane Fernandes, Provost and Vice Chancellor, provost@unca.edu, 153 Phillips Hall, CPO #1410, University of North Carolina at Asheville, One University Heights, Asheville, NC 28804-8503.

DEAN, ISABELLE FARRINGTON COLLEGE OF EDUCATION Fairfield, Connecticut

Sacred Heart University, a comprehensive co-educational independent Catholic university invites nominations and applications for the position of Dean of the Isabelle Farrington College of Education. Founded in 1963, Sacred Heart University was inspired by the ecumenical spirit of the Second Vatican Council and it was the first US Catholic university led and staffed by lay people. The University’s academic programs, rooted in the liberal arts and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition, are designed to develop men and women knowledgeable of self, rooted in faith, educated in mind and compassionate in heart. The University comprises of five colleges: the College of Arts & Sciences, the NCATE-accredited Isabelle Farrington College of Education, the College of Health Professions, the John F. Welch College of Business and the University College. Together, the colleges offer more than 50-degree programs at the associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels.

Newly restructured in 2011, the Isabelle Farrington College of Education offers programs that include certification in Teaching at the Elementary and Secondary levels, Educational Leadership and Reading. The College also offers a Master of Arts in Teaching as well as advanced study programs in Teaching, Literacy and Educational Leadership.

The Dean is the College’s chief academic, executive, and fiscal officer, a member of the University’s academic leadership team and reports to the provost and vice president for academic affairs. The College of Education Dean will be responsible for the overall academic businesses, planning and leadership of the College. Major responsibilities include: advocating for its interests within and outside the University, engaging and serving the local and regional educational community, working to increase the College’s visibility and securing the resources necessary to fulfill its ambitions. The Dean will be also responsible for maintaining and developing new academic programs; promoting an organizational climate that fosters excellence in teaching, research, professional practice and service as well as supporting the continued professional development of faculty and staff.

The Dean will hold an earned doctorate in an educational field. The successful candidate will possess experience as a higher education administrator and a record of scholarship, teaching, and current involvement in K-12 public education. The Dean must be able to articulate a clear academic vision and strategy for the College, promote academic rigor, drive the development of new academic programs, foster a collegial and collaborative ethos that capitalizes on the richness of the SHU community and encourage a continued commitment to academic excellence.

This is an exceptional opportunity for an accomplished academic leader with vision, spirit of innovation, a participatory leadership philosophy and a deep commitment to the mission of the University. Sacred Heart University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age or disability in employment and is an equal access/equal opportunity affirmative action University.

Sacred Heart University has retained the services of Isaacson, Miller, a national executive search firm, to assist in this critical effort.

Confidential inquiries, nominations, referrals and resumes with cover letters should be sent to: David A. Haley, Vice President & Director or Nureen Das, Associate, 263 Summer Street, 7th Floor, Boston, MA 02210, 4324@imsearch.com. Email submission of application materials is strongly encouraged.

More information on the College may be found at http://www.sacredheart.edu/ pages/539_isabelle_farrington_college_of_education.cfm.

SHU is an EEO/AA/ADA employer.

We encourage applications from traditionally underrepresented people. UNC Asheville is committed to increasing and sustaining the diversity of its faculty, staff, and student body as part of its mission and its commitment to excellence in the liberal arts. UNC Asheville is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

01/30/2012

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Salinas, CA

SUPERINTENDENT / PRESIDENT The Board of Trustees of Hartnell Community College invites nominations and applications for the position of Superintendent/President of Hartnell Community College. The College is located on California’s Central Coast and enjoys the advantages of a beautiful agricultural setting and easy access to metropolitan life, including many other educational institutions. Hartnell College is an Hispanic serving institution with a large diverse population. The college seeks a dynamic, experienced and visionary higher education leader, with a focus on student success, who will connect with the community and will lead the college to the next level of development.

To learn more about the College, and for a full position description and application procedures, please visit http://apptrkr.com/224228 or www.acctsearches.org The review of applications will continue until the position is filled. The target date for applications is: Thursday, February 23, 2012.

For additional information, nominations or confidential inquiries, contact Dr. Pamila Fisher, ACCT Search Consultant, (406) 570-0516, pamfisher@ bresnan.net or Dr. Narcisa Polonio, ACCT Vice President for Research, Education and Board Leadership Services at (202) 276- 1983, npolonio@acct.org.

Suffolk County Community College (SCCC) is an outstanding multicampus community college with an excellent reputation for high quality instruction, programs and services. The College is the largest community college in New York State and educates over 26,000 credit students and 10,000 non-credit and workforce training students on its three campuses Ammerman (Selden, NY), Eastern (Riverhead, NY), and Michael J. Grant (Brentwood, NY), as well as the Sayville Center and the Riverhead Culinary Arts and Hospitality Center. There are 493 full-time faculty and 1,458 adjunct faculty teaching 71 degree programs and 30 certificate programs. Suffolk County is the largest suburban county in the State of New York, with a population of over 1.5 million people. The attractive county includes rural and suburban communities. For more information visit the College web site at www.sunysuffolk.edu.

Associate Vice President of Student Affairs SSCCC seeks highly qualified candidates for the role of Associate Vice President for Student Affairs. The successful candidate will be an experienced administrator who will foster collaboration both at the campus level and college-wide. The Associate Vice President for Student Affairs reports to the Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs and as the college chief student affairs officer is responsible for the planning, policy development, implementation and assessment of all college student affairs programs and services consistent with the college mission and goals. For the full position profile please go to: http://access.sunysuffolk.edu/Faculty/HumanResources/index.asp?id=465

Equal Opportunity Employer

Chancellor Delgado Community College The Louisiana Community and Technical College System invite nominations and applications for the position of Chancellor of Delgado Community College. The Chancellor reports to President of the Louisiana Community & Technical College System. The System is comprised of seven community colleges, three technical community colleges and six technical colleges all offering world class programs. Each college has its own character with consistent System goals and plays an important role in expanding Louisiana’s workforce by offering degrees and certificates to meet the needs expressed by their communities and that complement the local economy.

To learn more about Delgado Community College, please visit www.dcc.edu Required Qualifications for the position include: • Earned doctorate or terminal degree from an accredited institution • Minimum of 5 years successful experience at the Vice President or President/Chancellor level in an institution of higher education, preferably in a comprehensive community college For a full position description and application procedures, please visit www.lctcs.edu or www.acctsearches.org Salary and benefits are competitive. The review of applications will continue until the position is filled. Candidates are encouraged to submit a complete application prior to Wednesday February 15, 2012 An Association of Community College Trustees Assisted Search Confidential inquiries regarding the application process or nominations should be directed to Dr. Narcisa Polonio, ACCT Vice President for Research, Education and Board Leadership Services at (202) 276-1983 (mobile), (202) 775-4670 (office) or npolonio@acct.org *** An ACCT Search*** www.acctsearches.org

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VCU V i r g i n i a C o m m o n w e a l t h U n i v e r s i t y

VDOE’s T/TAC at VCU

PROGRAM SPECIALIST IN BEHAVIOR Grades K-5 The Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) Training and Technical Assistance Center (T/TAC) at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is seeking an experienced and dynamic professional to serve as a program specialist for personnel serving children and youth with disabilities. This person will join a team of Program Specialists who provide training and technical assistance to schools, school divisions and state operated programs in the central and Southside Virginia regions. This is a twelve month nontenure track position that is grant funded through June 30, 2012. The position is located at the T/TAC office in Richmond.

Requirements include: a Master’s degree in Special Education, Administration and Supervision, Curriculum and Instruction, or a related field in Education: licensed or eligible for a Virginia Licensure in teaching or credentialing system for specific discipline; a minimum of seven years of teaching/supporting elementary age students (Grades K - 5); and at least one year of experience supporting school divisions in implementing a school-wide PBIS/ESD program.

For complete information and the application process, please visit our website: www.vcu.edu/ttac.

Application Deadline: Feb 29, 2012 Virginia Commonwealth University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Women, minorities and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

01/30/2012

Santa Monica Community College is accepting applications for

the following full-time, tenure-track faculty positions: • • • • • • • • • • • •

Communications (Global Media) Dance English - Developmental/Transfer English as a Second Language (2) Geology Interior Architectural Design Korean Mathematics - Developmental/College Level Medical Laboratory Technician Nursing Photography (Commercial) World History

SMC is also recruiting for the following academic administrative position: • Director, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics)

The Santa Monica Community College District operates a single college (Santa Monica College) with a 42-acre main campus and five satellite campuses in the City of Santa Monica, located in the western part of Los Angeles County. The College provides excellent academic and career technical programs and counseling services to an ethnically diverse student population.

Interested applicants may review the job bulletins and apply online at https://jobs.smc.edu , or contact the Office of Human Resources at 310-434-4336 (24 hr. employment information line).

EOE

Division of Enrollment Management: Associate Vice President

The position focuses specifically on the seamless collaboration between the Division and campus academic departments, administrative units and student services offices. Has direct supervision of the Office of Admissions and the Office of Student Financial Affairs collaborating with the directors in the successful planning and implementation of services. Has Division wide responsibility as it relates to research and assessment, budgeting and staff development.

For a full job description and application, please visit http://jobs.ufl.edu requisition # 0810238 Open until filled.

TENURE TRACK FACULTY · F/T POSITION BEGINNING APRIL 2012 FOR:

CHILD STUDY Seeks candidate with specialization in Special Education, Ph.D in Special Education and minimum of 2 yrs exp teaching students with disabilities. Higher education exp preferred.

Send resumes and cover letter to:

Susan Straut-Collard, 245 Clinton Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11205 Go to:

www.sjcny.edu/ employment EOE

01/30/2012

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for further detail.

OUTLOOK

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P.O. Box 68 Paramus, NJ 07652-0068 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

P ri min g the Pump. ..

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES HELP LATINO STUDENTS PREPARE FOR HIGHER ED

The

Miquela Rivera, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist with years of clinical, early childhood and consultative experience. She lives in Albuquerque, N.M.

dismissal bell rang at a high school largely serving Latinos and other minorities, and I watched, stunned, as the students were shooed off campus. Only those in football practice or tutoring could stay. For all other students, school was over and they were told to clear out. Go home. Go anywhere. Get off the campus so security could lock up and adults could go home.

It was considered a failing school, with high dropout rates and low achievement scores. Hardly welcoming, most students knew that it was where they were required to spend their time, but it wasn’t their place.

Switch scenes to a college campus. Ask a random sample of students what they enjoyed most about high school and many will name time spent with friends and extracurricular activities. Athletics, leadership organizations, community service groups, and scholastic competitive teams are the carrot at the end of the academic stick for many students: complete your schoolwork and you can enjoy what you choose outside of class.

While a high school student selects extracurricular activities because she is good at them and they are fun, those activities will also help her become well-rounded in preparation for higher education. For many Latino students, extracurricular activities are the most appealing part of school, outside the classroom where they might feel compelled to do work for its own sake. Through extracurricular activities Hispanic students build new relationships and access a broad menu of possibilities.

By voluntarily attempting something new in an extracurricular activity, a Latino might discover his talents and build lifelong, useful skills.

Why are extracurricular activities such a draw for Latino students?

Whether students are in sports or on the student council, taking pictures for the yearbook or thinking on their feet in debate or mock trial, they are learning goal setting, determination and perseverance. As contextual learners, Hispanic students can see classroom principles applied in the “real-life” situations of extracurricular activities. Writing well or making and executing plans suddenly make sense because they serve a clear, self-determined purpose.

Of equal or greater importance than goal-attainment in extracurricular activities for some Latinos, though, are the interpersonal relationships developed on teams or in clubs. Working with others toward a

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mutual goal, spending leisure time in fun conversation and learning together adds an important, lasting dimension to the school experience. Structured, extracurricular activities often permit a spontaneous, more casual, less-prescribed way of learning. Unlike a typical classroom where students receive information prepared by a teacher, students self-discover, master skills and gain knowledge in a more naturally evolving way through extracurricular activities. They learn the merits of planning, researching, practicing, competing, executing, evaluating and celebrating the outcome on a debate, mock trial or model U.N. team. And they learn the same lessons through athletics. Understanding the rules of the game, developing strategies and tactics to win, practicing, facing an opponent and accepting the outcome are all part of success.

Schools that close the campus 20 minutes after dismissal aren’t big on extracurricular activities, and they aren’t big on retention and academic success, either. Budget cuts and the emphasis on standardized testing don’t help, since extracurricular activities (especially nonathletics) often take a backseat or get wiped out completely when money is tight or the pressure is on.

School administrators might argue that schools cannot afford extracurricular activities. Truthfully, they can’t afford not to sponsor them.

Retooling schools to provide extracurricular activities can help students engage and commit to learning in and outside the classroom.

Those activities need to be inclusive culturally, economically and talentwise so all students can participate if they desire. Requiring students to try out for teams and then ousting those who don’t make the cut runs counter to the purpose of a school – educating students – and to the basic Latino value of loyalty to the group. Instead, communities must support the schools to find ways for Hispanic students to belong and thrive.

By integrating service, leadership and student engagement, Latinos and others will naturally do their personal best. All are better served by encouraging teens to participate in extracurricular activities at school lest they find less productive – and more dangerous – options elsewhere.

These articles appeared online only in the 01/30/12 Issue

TARGETING HIGHER EDUCATION

California Dreamin’

It

by Gustavo A. Mellander has long been known that higher education enhances a person’s professional options and financial opportunities. And that’s no sin.

Blind dedication to seeking unlimited wealth is.

So how are we doing? Let’s focus on the average undergrad who receives effective orientation and selects a major that meets her interests and capabilities. Her college degree will boost her earnings throughout her working career.

I purposely used a female example because more females attend college than men nowadays. That is true even in medical colleges and law schools. Yet according to Brian Burnsed from U.S. News & World Report, “women and minorities benefit less from a college education.” His data are from Georgetown University’s Center for Education, specifically its The College Payoff report.

Yet higher education remains a great investment for all concerned.

Intellectual development and the opening of new horizons is the first benefit but the financial rewards are good as well. Persons who complete graduate education earn more during their careers than those with less education. Those with bachelor’s degrees earn about $2.27 million over their lifetime, while those with masters, doctoral, or professional degrees earn $2.67 million, $3.25 million and $3.65 million, respectively.

Those with bachelor’s degrees, no matter the field, earn vastly more than their counterparts with some college ($1.55 million in lifetime earnings) or a high school diploma ($1.30 million lifetime).

In short, acquiring more education, no matter the level of attainment or the field of study, invariably results in greater financial success.

Interestingly, financial rewards are predicated on one’s course of study.

As most Hispanic Outlook readers know, one’s academic major and the industry we select have an enormous impact on our lifetime earnings.

The Higher-Paid Ones Which careers on average pay more? The STEM ones. That is to say, careers in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. These STEM careerists earn more, on average, than people, even with advanced degrees, who work in fields such as education and service professions. (It is well to remember that most Hispanics still work in service-oriented professions such as education, social services and community service. We might want to be more aggressive in advising our students about the other opportunities that exist.)

Luckily the Bush administration established significant scholarships and grants for youngsters to train for STEM careers. President Obama continued those programs so opportunities exist.

Let’s heed Jamie Merisotis, president of Lumina Foundation, who recently commented, “The payoff from getting a college degree is huge and is actually increasing. For people wondering if a college degree is worth it: Not only is it worth it, but the premium is growing.”

Sobering News Unfortunately, sobering news still exists for college-bound women and minorities.

The glass ceiling for women seems shatterproof. It’s hard to get promot-

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ed. And salaries are impacted. Across all industries, women have to obtain a Ph.D. to earn more in their lifetimes ($2.86 million) than men with only a bachelor’s degree ($2.60 million). Similarly, women with bachelor’s degrees earn nearly the same – about $1.90 million – over the course of their careers as men with some college experience but no degree.

This suggests that women who want to earn more than their male counterparts will either have to attain more degrees or select a higher-paying industry. Many women are on to that and are closing the gap by getting more education.

Minorities All ethnic groups’ career earnings are less than those of Caucasians.

That is true for minorities with master’s, doctoral, and professional degrees. The sole exception are Asian-Americans, who outpace Caucasians with similar degrees.

Hispanics with master’s degrees earn nearly the same in their lifetimes – roughly $2.50 million. That is how much Caucasians workers with bachelor’s degrees earn.

Golden State High Schoolers: Ill-Prepared for College or Life I bring up California because so many young Hispanics live there. Also, California is a national pacesetter. Much of what happens there ultimately influences the whole nation. Like all states, California’s prosperity rests on the strength of its work force. A new report from the Education Trust-West (ETW) finds that the Golden State’s high schools aren’t preparing students to participate in an economy that increasingly demands a college education.

Across five districts it studied, college-readiness rates among high school graduates ranged from 24 percent to 60 percent. In one illustrative district, the course of study provided to about 30 percent of White high school graduates and almost half of Hispanic graduates failed to prepare them for either college or a career.

Similar patterns exist nationwide. ACT test results show that only 66 percent of U.S. test takers overall met the college-readiness benchmark in English, and

just 43 percent met the college-readiness benchmark in mathematics.

Minorities scored even lower. Among Hispanics, 46 percent met the benchmark in English, 27 percent in math. For Blacks, 34 percent reached the benchmark in English; 13 percent did so in math.

Education Master Plans In the past, California fashioned serious forward-thinking educational plans that were second to none. Its statewide education master plans were studied and copied by many other states and indeed foreign nations.

After World War II, serious education reforms opened the doors for millions who heretofore had not been served. This led to a golden era for innovation, for business, for progress.

Yet the bloom began to fade some 20 years ago. One reason many suggest is that California’s schools began to falter. One indicator notes that just three-quarters of students entering grade school earn a high school diploma. Further, many who do graduate lack the necessary skills to succeed in college or for meaningful careers, a significant cohort comprising 60 percent of the state’s public school population.

Only six out of every 10 Hispanic and students who enter high school actually graduate. Of these, less than a quarter complete the coursework necessary to apply for admission to California’s four-year public universities.

If these statistics weren’t dismal enough, current data on college success is just as alarming. Although Latino students are now being admitted to colleges at a healthy rate not dreamed of two generations ago, their college achievements are dismal. Many take a full six years to graduate.

Thousands never do graduate.

In the more selective University of California system, barely three quarters of Hispanic and Blacks graduate in six years.

What about California’s renowned community colleges? More than half of Hispanic students start their higher education careers there. What’s their record?

It is a disappointing one. The dropout rate is 60 percent at some colleges. Less than a third of Hispanic and Black students who stated an interest to transfer to a four-year college ever transfer.

Employment Studies also reveal a dramatic 10-year decline in the employment rate among teens and young adults. Many just can’t find meaningful employment. Unlike centuries gone by, having a strong back and a good work ethic are not enough to secure good employment nowadays.

Employers are frequently disappointed that the youngsters they hire lack essential knowledge to learn and grow. Their foundations are weak and fragmented. Employers seek and need advanced levels of preparation among their employees, even low-level ones, so they can learn new skills.

Many high school graduates don’t have them.

Jobs once considered “blue-collar and labor-intensive” now require a rigorous academic foundation. Automotive technicians, plumbers, manufacturing workers and the building trades require “college-track” levels of physics and mathematical skills, not to mention strong English literacy.

In today’s reality, much of the training for these occupations takes place in two-year colleges. So unless more Hispanic youngsters go to these colleges and succeed, they will not be able to enter these professions.

Limiting Reality A study, Unlocking Doors and Expanding Opportunity: Moving Beyond the Limiting Reality of College and Career Readiness in California, has just been released. It is as wordy as its title but full of useful analysis and advice. I think of it as a latter-day “California Dreamin’.”

Among many facts, the report notes that California, “to meet workplace needs for the next two decades, will need one million more college graduates.”

These graduates will be needed in high-growth job sectors such as business, arts and design, health care, and transportation. Presently, they either require or have dramatically increased their proportion of college-educated workers. It is clear that they will continue to notch up education requirements. So greater numbers of students will need to earn bachelor’s degrees to be hired.

The report emphasizes that to respond to these needs, California’s high schools “must dramatically increase not only the number of students who earn diplomas, but they must graduate with meaningful preparation.”

This means ensuring that students have the skills, knowledge and coursework necessary to access college and career opportunities. And it means eliminating the systematic tracking that exacerbates differences among student subgroups. The present system places low-income students, which includes most Hispanics, in tracks that receive less rigorous instruction and coursework. The ultimate results are inferior educational outcomes that lead inevitably to fewer career opportunities.

Linked Learning Luckily, there is a fresh groundswell of commitment to high school reform in California. Educators and policymakers are refocused to expand college and career readiness.

One of the efforts already inaugurated is called Linked Learning. It proposes to increase graduation rates and prepare students for both college and career options “by offering an engaging, relevant and rigorous course of study – one that includes college-preparatory coursework, challenging technical courses, work-based learning opportunities, and supplemental services to support students.”

In the Linked Learning approach, high schools must “open doors to both college and career education. Few students are currently receiving either a truly integrated college-ready or career-ready education. Secondly “career education” is often a less rigorous option targeted disproportionately at low-income students.

It is contended that each student should receive a rigorous education.

The traditional practice of closing one door to open the other should end.

It is not a new concept, and it will not guarantee success for all. But I think it is a step in the right direction.

Two important concepts are necessary: 1. A commitment to offer solid college preparation programs in all high schools. Better coordination is needed with the higher education sector. Presently, overall levels of access to and success in college-ready coursework are far too low, especially for low-income students.

2. A new way of thinking about career preparation is needed. Career education is a necessary element of our society. It should not be a dumping ground. It should be imbued with dignity. The first step is raise the level, rigor and relevance of student coursework.

By reframing college and career readiness and making a commitment to equity in opportunity, all high school graduates could acquire the skills, knowledge and coursework needed to unlock all of the doors in front of them.

Bottom Line Weaknesses in career skills and college preparatory programs of study in high school exist nationwide. The dismal records of too many students once they leave high school accentuates the need for reform. The first step must be to infuse more rigor into both courses of study. Society does not help students by passing them on before they learned what they should have.

Will California lead the way? Or is this just “California Dreamin’?”

Dr. Mellander, a native Californian, was a college president for 20 years and an outspoken supporter of higher academic standards.

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FACULTY

Journalist Claims Tenure/Adjuncts Lead to Poor Quality Education

In

by Frank DiMaria

The Faculty Lounges and Other Reasons Why You Won’t Get the College Education You Paid For, Naomi Schaefer Riley contends that tenure and the use of adjuncts are the biggest obstacles in a student’s pursuit of a quality, affordable education.

Riley, who is Harvard educated and whose parents are academics, contends that at most colleges, promotion and tenure decisions are based not on teaching ability or whether or not professors have prepared their students for the work force, but rather on a record of publication. Her opinion is a familiar one.

“Higher education is a game of prestige, and the way professors gain prestige is by publishing articles and books. It doesn’t matter who reads them as long as they are in a peer-reviewed journal. So for professors who want to move up the ladder either to the next step at their university or to get a better position at another university, publishing is the only thing that matters. People at prestigious universities joke that getting a teaching award is the death knell for your career,” says Riley, formerly at The Wall Street Journal covering religion, higher education and philanthropy for its editorial page.

Students searching for a college often consult popular resources such as the U.S. News & World Report rankings. The problem with that approach, says Riley, is that a significant portion of those rankings is based on a school’s reputation, which is based on the publishing record of its professors.

“They think they are finding the ideal campus atmosphere or they may think they are finding the ideal classroom experience. But one tool they use – these rankings – is relying significantly on the reputation of the school, which does not have a whole lot to do about the experience they will have in the classroom. ... Students go to universities expecting they are going to have a particular classroom experience, and in fact the students’ classroom experience is the lowest priority on the mind of faculty,” says Riley.

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In her book, Riley states that professors who have been awarded tenure because of brilliant research are still considered assets to their universities if they do not publish another paper for the rest of their careers. Their reputation alone draws more students, more alumni donations, more grant money and a higher U.S. News & World Report ranking. But professors who are awarded tenure based on their teaching talent are of no use if they decide not to put much effort into teaching any more, she says.

One of the problems with tenure, according to Riley, is that once professors gain tenure, they are no longer evaluated. Teaching is a dynamic profession, says Riley, and those who teach are in need of constant evaluation to determine if they are doing it well. “Just because you taught a class well 15 years ago, it doesn’t necessarily help the students in front of you now at all,” says Riley.

And once professors are tenured and enjoy the academic freedom they have earned, they feel they can do whatever they want, says Riley.

Professors’ rush to publish on subjects that are novel, exciting and never before researched means that the market is flooded with books and papers on near meaningless and obscure topics, in her view. She notes that in 2008, according to the Year’s Work in English Studies, more than 100 new scholarly books were published on Shakespeare alone. Riley writes: “Tenure depends on the professor’s ability to say something new, but it is no longer easy to carve out new things to say.” She suggests that professors spend more time introducing young minds to Shakespeare’s works rather than publishing on the minutiae of his life.

While full professors are busying themselves with researching and publishing on obscure topics, courses they would otherwise be teaching are assigned to adjuncts who, according to Riley, “do the real work of teaching.” These individuals often hold positions at more than one campus, earn less than minimum wage and typically don’t have offices or receive benefits. They are part-time faculty or graduate students hired on a semes-

ter-to-semester basis and are treated like second-class citizens by their colleagues, Riley writes.

The relationship between adjuncts and their institution is tenuous, and students are aware of that. Riley introduces her readers to Nancy Jimeno, an adjunct at Cal State Fullerton Riverside. Jimeno came to teaching late in life and calls herself naïve. When she was attending graduate school at Cal State Fullerton and had finished everything but her dissertation, she assumed the school would offer her a teaching position. It did – as an adjunct lecturer for $600 per month, with 90 percent of the students coming from homes where English is not spoken and 60 percent not prepared for college at all.

College students, says Riley, often wonder if the adjunct standing before them in the classroom will be there next semester, and they get a sense of how much the university cares about teaching in general from the way it treats the adjuncts. Adjuncts, she says, are burdened by the amount of teaching they have to do. They are given huge introductory classes, which professors who are higher up on the ladder typically do not want to teach.

Because adjuncts are rarely offered offices, they have to meet their students at Starbucks or in the faculty parking lot.

Institutions renew adjuncts’ contracts based on student evaluations, because faculty members will rarely, if ever, sit in on an adjunct’s class, considering it a waste of time. But this method of evaluation leads to grade inflation. “What happens is – if adjuncts want a job for the next semester, they give students good grades. There are a couple of studies that looked at this. I can’t say that this is universally true, but it does seem to me that that is the way incentives are pointing. If you want to keep your job for another semester and the job’s evaluation is basically based only on what students say, you have to give students high grades,” says Riley.

Adjuncts also contribute to lower graduation rates in what Riley calls a vicious cycle. The people on campus who are the most qualified to teach are the ones least interested in teaching, particularly large classes, introductory classes and remedial classes. “The remedial students then are getting screwed,” says Riley.

But that’s not to say that all adjuncts are less qualified than full professors. It comes down to time. Adjuncts who hold positions at multiple campuses do not have the time needed to devote to their students and classes. “Imagine yourself as a student and you’ve just finished your English 101 class with an adjunct who’s basically racing out the door to get to the next job.”

If tenure were abolished in higher education, institutions could eliminate those inefficiencies brought on by tenured professors who don’t really do anything on staff, says Riley, who has been a guest lecturer at half a dozen colleges and taught one two-week journalism course.

The abolition of tenure would also change the higher education job market, which would take on aspects of the job market outside higher education. Professors often grouse about their inability to teach in a place they most want to live. “They get a job right out of graduate school. Their first job may be in North Dakota, and they may not want to live there the rest of their life. But if they get tenure there, they’ll never go anywhere,” says Riley. If institutions did not offer tenure, she believes, there would be more movement among professors and institutions would be forced to offer salaries dependant on the quality of the individual professor rather than on a schedule or pay scale.

Rather than tenure, Riley suggests that institutions offer professors multiyear contracts based on, among other criteria, the evaluation of adminis-

tration, former students and fellow professors.

“People throw up their hands and say, ‘You can’t evaluate teaching; it’s all subjective,’ and I don’t think that’s the case. I think student evaluations are worth something, but they are not the be-all and end-all. What most people who studied them find is that they are pretty accurate at the highest and lowest levels. So if you walk on campus, students can tell you who the best professors are and who the worst professors are. In the middle, it gets kind of muffled. Secondly, administration and other professors and colleagues can do some type of evaluation and sit in on a class. They know what the content is supposed to be, and they can actually tell whether a professor is effectively delivering it,” says Riley.

To illustrate her point, Riley writes about John Silber, the former and longtime president of Boston University, who told her that he never offered tenure to professors without sitting in on their classes. “Once in a lifetime you’ll find a college president who does something like that; it’s kind of rare,” she says.

Riley suggests that a school’s young alumni should also have a voice in the evaluation process. Two to three years removed from their college experience, these individuals can draw upon their real-world situations and bring that into the evaluation, determining if a course had been effective in their lives beyond college. At that point in one’s life, she says, they would have gotten over any resentment toward professors who gave bad grades and have enough distance from their classroom experience to make an evaluation based on which professors had the most significant effect on their lives. “I really think young alumni evaluations would be a good addition to this process,” says Riley.

For students to receive better value for their tuition dollars, their classroom experience must change for the better, according to Riley, and that starts with general education requirements taught by full professors.

Riley says that professors have basically abdicated their responsibilities.

They provide students with a list of the basic foundational topics they need to be an educated person, but at the same time these professors have gone off in their own particular direction doing their own particular research and teaching classes in the narrow niches they are researching, after completing four years, it is not clear to them or anyone else what they have learned.

Both faculty and students play a role in determining whether or not America’s college students receive the education they pay for. Faculty, says Riley, is in charge of the broad theoretical issues as well as those mundane things that can also be important. She feels there is going to have to be a combination in which administration exerts some power over faculty and faculty are going to have to get with the program while parents and students are going to have to be a little smarter about how they buy higher education.

Anthony Grafton, in The New York Review of Books, calls her book “a blast at professors written by a distinguished journalist.” But adds, “When Riley dismisses most research as worthless because a few senior academics say it is,” she takes flight “into a realm of higher snark that is fun to read but ultimately unhelpful.”

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