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CHAPTER 7: College Access and the STEM Pipeline: The Case of Nevada
- Johns Hopkins University Press
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chapter 7 College Access and the STEM Pipeline The Case of Nevada Nevada is ten thousand tales of ugliness and beauty, viciousness and virtue. Richard Lillard, Desert Challenge As students make their way through school, there are points when they may become less likely to study math and science—points where they may be lost forever from the STEM pipeline. One critical juncture is the transition from high school to college. We must make mathematics and science available and attractive to virtually every student in middle and high schools. If skilled teachers help students master these subjects, a college degree and a STEM career are realistic future prospects. Unfortunately, many American students do not have access to affordable college education. Most colleges and universities are beyond the financial reach of many students and their families, leading them to borrow staggering amounts to finance their undergraduate educations. They then become modern indentured servants, struggling for years to pay off their college loans. Is a college education worth the expenditure of time, energy, and money? Many young people choose occupations that do not require a college education . Some of the fastest growing jobs in our economy require skilled workers who need no more training than that available from a proprietary school or community college vocational program. Examples include wind tunnel technicians and underwater welders. Many people with an associate’s degree earn as much as their counterparts with a bachelor’s degree. And some graduates with four-year degrees have trouble finding jobs in the post-2008 recession economy. However, when individuals entering the workforce can expect multiple jobs and careers over their lifetime, learning how to learn and to think critically— both staples of the undergraduate experience—have become more important c o l l e g e a c c e s s a n d t h e s t e m p i p e l i n e 139 than learning a particular occupation. College provides access to careers that are often not open to those without a college degree. The American dream has always given the poorest children the opportunity to succeed, and a college education is the main vehicle for moving from poverty to the middle class. The economic odds are against the high school graduate who does not continue his or her education. A liberal arts college education leads to a better quality of life, even if lifetime earnings are not increased. A college education enlarges students’ worldview, introduces them to culturally enriching experiences, and forces them to review, question, and solidify their core values. It essentially prepares a young person for survival and success in middle-class America, for leadership roles. Access to college is a key issue in maintaining the STEM pipeline. President Obama wisely has recognized the important role that community colleges play as a port of entry into a four-year college education for many students. In 2009 Obama announced a multi-billion-dollar initiative to increase student access to community colleges. Nevada is an ideal place to explore issues of college access. In a town outside Las Vegas, a new college was established to help increase access to higher education for thousands of previously underserved students. What Happens in Vegas . . . If one were to contrive a laboratory experiment to test whether a college education is worth the investment, it might look like Las Vegas. Consider the following: • The Las Vegas economy is mostly composed of service jobs in casinos and hotels, making service employment an attractive career prospect for high school graduates. The most coveted service position in hotels (perhaps aside from managerial positions) is valet parking. • Valet parking attendants in Las Vegas derive their income largely from tips. Income from tips often is not reported to the IRS and therefore is not taxed. Las Vegas parking attendants make about $60,000 per year. • First-year teachers in the Clark County school district, of which the city of Las Vegas is a part, earn roughly the same as entry-level hotel housekeepers. Several years ago, I was asked to be the lead academic planner for a new fouryear college in Henderson, a suburb of Las Vegas. More colleges are desperately [44.204.125.111] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 08:08 GMT) 140 s t e m t h e t i d e needed there. Nevada ranks last—behind even Mississippi and Arkansas—in the percentage of high school graduates who go to college. The college had...