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Page 14
November 17, 2010
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College Dropouts Cost Us All
Working
together to
support students
by Ji ix ; e G reg
M athis
Oftentimes, when we
think of a student who
drops out of college, we
think of how that will
affect them. We become
concerned about the
limited career options
and decreased earning potential
they’ll face without a college de
gree. Rarely do we think of the
cost to the larger society. But we
should: college dropouts cost
taxpayers billions in both the short
and long term. We owe to them -
and ourselves - to ensure they
complete their education.
A new report shows that states
allocated more than $6 billion to
four year colleges and universi
ties over a five year pe
riod to pay for the edu
cation of students who
did not return for their
second year. The study
also shows that the fed
eral government and
states together spent al
most $3 billion on grants for stu
dents who didn't start their sopho
more year.
In a depressed economy, it’s
particularly disturbing to learn
that money is essentially being
wasted to pay for educations that
are not being received. However,
the answer is not, as many critics
suggest, to discourage students
who may not be ready for college
from attending. Rather, schools
and the government must work
together to figure out how we can
support students throughout
their college careers and ensure
they graduate.
Graduating from college is a
great personal achievement. Do
ing so can dramatically change
the graduate’s quality of life. Col
lege graduates earn almost $ 1 mil
lion more over the course of their
career than those with a high
school diploma. But it’s not just
the graduate’s who win. The addi
tional money they earn is then put
back into the economy.
Additionally, a more educated
workforce helps lift the American
economy since the workers com
panies have to choose from will
be more qualified. Making sure
our young people finish college
isn’t important to just their per
sonal success; it’s key to our con
tinued growth as a society.
Most parents - and society at
large - expect young adults at
tending college to have the skills
to handle all that is required of
them. That isn't always the case.
From dealing with increased fi
nancial pressures that come with
paying for school to juggling a
more rigorous course load to new
social pressures, college is a dif
ferent world and, unfortunately,
many students crack under the
pressure.
Schools must work to increase
their student service programs to
provide financial, academic and
psychological counseling to stu
dents at every step of their aca
demic career.
College readiness is not always
determined by academics; we must
take the necessary steps to en
sure our kids are able to handle all
of the new pressures and respon
sibilities of college.
Greg Mathis is a former Michi
gan District Court judge and cur
rently is a syndicated television
show judge.
End the Tax Cuts for the Wealthy
Priority should
be job creation
need to decide
w hat to do
about tax cuts
that will expire
by E die R aseee
at the end of
C ongress has one m ajor
2010.
piece of unfinished business
During the
that must be tackled before the Bush administration Congress
year ends. Policy makers will passed two enormous tax cuts
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that were skewed to benefit
people with the highest incomes.
To make the revenue losses ap
pear less extreme, the cuts were
phased in overa number of years
and then scheduled to abruptly
end on Dec. 31, 2010.
These gimmicks greatly re
duced the 10-year cost of the tax
cuts and made them more palat
able to anyone concerned about
the impact on the federal budget
of trillions in lost revenue. But at
the same time, supporters of the
cuts assum ed that C ongress
would make them permanent
before they expired.
Now with the tax cuts fully
phased in, the predicted impact
on the federal budget has be
come a reality. In 2009, the cuts
were responsible for over one-
quarter of the federal govern
ment deficit. O f course, the
econom ic dow nturn was the
most important factor driving up
the deficit. Fewer people w ork
ing means people pay less in
taxes. And while our safety net
is meager, it is still costly when
millions of additional people are
forced to rely on unemployment
insurance, food stam ps, and
Medicaid.
As members of Congress con
sider the tax cuts, they need to
remember that many voters be
lieve the nation’s priority must
be putting people back to work.
People need jobs. Moreover, the
deficit will shrink only after the
economy has regained strength,
when working people and thriv
ing businesses are paying taxes,
and fewer people need to rely on
safety net programs.
President Obama is proposing
to extend the Bush tax cuts for
lower-and middle-income tax pay
ers. But he wants to end the cuts
for 2 percent of tax payers: couples
with incomes over $250,000 and
singles with income over $200,000.
This would bring in $40 billion in
additional tax revenue in 2011 and
over $600 billion over the next 10
years.
So what is a responsible mem
ber of Congress to do? Should
the skewed Bush tax cuts that
bestowed the greatest benefits
on our wealthiest citizens be
extended, allowing the wealthi
est to keep the $40 billion next
year? Or should this money be
used for job creation?
O f 11 options examined by
the nonpartisan Congressional
Budget Office, extending the tax
cuts for the wealthy was the
least effective way to create
jobs. Providing ajob-creation tax
credit for businesses would gen
erate four to six times as many
jobs, and providing financial aid
to state governments to mini
mize layoffs would create two to
three times as many.
In recent years, the rich have
gotten richer and everyone else
has gotten the leftovers. Ending
the Bush tax cuts for the high-
est-incom e tax payers would
slightly reduce this disparity. The
additional tax revenue could cre
ate jobs in the short run and
reduce the deficit in the longer
term. Congress should have no
doubt about the best decision to
make.
Edie Rasell is minister for
economic justice fo r the United
Church o f Christ.
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