College Admission Help

College Admission Help: Obama calls for college for all; could it be done?

By JUSTIN POPE and LIBBY QUAID

In his address to a joint session of Congress, President Barack Obama called for every American to pursue some form of education beyond high school.
It's an ambitious goal — some might say impossible. Currently, only two of every five American adults have a two- or four-year college degree. Millions of Americans struggle even to complete high school, with one in four dropping out. And even a high school degree is no guarantee a student is ready for college.
Particularly alarming are the college rates for low-income and minority students. One recent study reported more than 90 percent of low-income teens said they planned to go to college — but only half actually enroll.
Those who do enroll are substantially less likely than others to finish their degree. If they borrowed money for college and don't graduate, they may be worse off than if they hadn't even started college.
The Associated Press asked six experts — from the worlds of policy, philanthropy, and some who work directly with struggling students — to answer the same two questions.
Is the president's goal realistic? And what would it take to attain it? Here are some responses:
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Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust, an advocacy group for children, particularly poor and minority children:
Absolutely! Just as those GIs stepped up to the challenges of college, today's young people will, too. But we have work to do.
First, we must get serious about high schools. Instead of preparing some for college and others for the jailhouse, we need to help high schools prepare every student for college.
Second, we have to dramatically improve results for low-income and minority students, now more than half of our youth. Increasing their success is the only way to ensure our national success.
Finally, colleges need to accept some responsibility for improving graduation rates. That includes holding costs down, and focusing not just on getting students in the door, but out with degrees. Yes, students need to work harder. But what colleges do matters a lot.
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Richard Vedder, Ohio University professor and member of the Commission on the Future of Higher Education assembled by former Education Secretary Margaret Spellings:
Not everyone can or should go to college. Given the dubious quality of our secondary schools as well as limited cognitive skills and motivation, many students are incapable of college-level work. Fulfillment of President Obama's goal would lead to many students failing, resources being squandered and the quality of postsecondary education being diluted.
I think it is sheer fantasy to believe we will lead the world in the percent of young adults with college degrees by 2020. More generally, the president's approach is the equivalent of dropping dollars out of airplanes over student homes and college campuses. That will not change colleges' behavior to make them less arrogant and elite, and more affordable, efficient and accountable.
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Nicole Hurd, executive director of the National College Advising Corps, which places recent college graduates in low-income schools to work as college guidance counselors:
All students are capable of continuing their education beyond high school. And while there are no easy answers, one way to open the door wider is to demonstrate to our young people that college is possible.
No one can do this better than recent college graduates. There is something powerful about a 23-year-old telling a high school student that "I went to college and if I can do it, you can, too." Or "My family was worried about the cost of college, but the aid is out there. Let's sit down and fill out your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)." Or "If you want to go to college and get a good job, you need to take hard classes and do your best."
Many of the barriers to higher education, whether financial, social, or cultural, can be overcome through this kind of mentoring and advising. In calling high-school students to college, President Obama is calling college students to service. Just imagine if 500 recent graduates served in our public high schools. Such a group could mentor 150,000 low-income and first-generation students — and could help thousands enroll in college who might not otherwise have found their way. While this kind of service isn't the only solution, it could go a long way.

College Admission Help: Obama calls for college for all; could it be done?