New York Times Editorial - Killing off America's future

New York Times Editorial - Killing off America's future
Copyright by The New York Times
Published: September 17, 2006



America's domination of the global information economy flowed directly from policies that allowed the largest generation in the nation's history broad access to a first-rate college education. By subsidizing public universities to keep tuition low, and providing federal tuition aid to poor and working-class students, the country vaulted tens of millions of people into the middle class while building the best- educated work force in the world.

Those farsighted policies, however, are a thing of the past. Cuts in college aid and soaring tuition at state colleges have made it difficult for young people to educate themselves.

The warning about American vulnerability was underscored yet again in a study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, a nonpartisan research organization. The report highlights some ominous trends. As the boomers march off into retirement, the generation that replaces them is shaping up to be less educated by far. No longer the world leader in terms of the proportion of young people enrolled in college, America now ranks 16th among the 27 nations examined when it comes to the proportion of college students who complete college degrees or certificate programs.

When judged in terms of college affordability, 43 American states are given F's in the new report. The states - and the colleges themselves - have shifted aid once aimed at the poor students to the middle and upper income levels.

Unless we Americans renew our commitment to the higher education policies, we could soon find ourselves at the mercy of an increasingly competitive global economy.