Five years ago, the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) created its Public Agenda for College and Career Success, which sets a goal of having 60 percent of Illinois citizens obtain some education beyond high school.
The ten-year initiative is reaching its halfway point, and Illinois State Rep. Bob Pritchard, a Republican who serves Illinois's 70th district, talked about what's in store.
WNIJ: You sent a letter to the editor recently about the program, and in it you mentioned about 43 percent of Illinoisans currently have either a certificate or additional education after high school. Overall, how do you think the program is doing at this point?
Rep. Pritchard: The point of the public agenda is to say that individuals need to have more than just a high school education to compete in the kinds of international jobs we have. We have been growing slowly since the public agenda was adopted five years ago, but we're only at 43 percent with 60 percent as the goal ... so we've got a long ways to go.
So if we're going to get to that 60 percent figure, we've got to focus more on adult learners. That's partly why I wrote the letter to the editor: to say that, if you've started a college or university degree, think about going back and finishing that degree. That's one way that we can move closer to that 60-percent number.
In addition, there's a lot of people that are unhappy with their job or they're not making enough for their family lifestyle. Maybe they ought to think about enhancing their skills in some way so they can get a better-paying, more satisfying job.
WNIJ: What obstacles do you think this initiative -- the public agenda -- might face with Gov. Bruce Rauner's budget proposal?
Pritchard: I think we have a real dilemma, in that we've made college more unaffordable, more expensive, because the state has been reneging on its responsibility, just as we've been reneging on our K-through-12 responsibilities. In higher education, the state used to provide somewhere in the 60 percents in the cost of college education. Now, we're at 25 percent or lower.
So we've been de-funding higher education, and that's one of the reasons that a number of people haven't been able to go to college as they desire. They just can't afford it. And that's part of the public agenda -- it's part of the agenda that we haven't addressed very well -- is how do we make college more affordable?
And a number of the things that have been tried is we look at AP classes, advanced placement classes, dual-credit classes, that high schools are able to partner with a community college or a four-year institution. That student is able to take a class in high school that counts both for high school graduation as well as a toward a college certificate.
Another one is to encourage students to take a full load. Too many students take 12 hours a semester. Really, 15 hours a semester is what's necessary for full-time, and getting through college faster is important because life sometimes gets in the way of students pursuing a college degree. And that's what forces some students to drop out, is that they get a family, they have other family demands, and that's one of the things that we need to try to minimize so that people are able to achieve their degree goals and dreams.
WNIJ: Last question: Why did you make the goal 60 percent of citizens to have education beyond high school?
Pritchard: Well, that is a national set goal that has been set by experts looking at how the United States can be competitive in the world, and it comes to their conclusion that we have to have about 60 percent of our people with the skills and abilities beyond what is normally provided in high school if they're going to be competitive and be able to get the jobs that really now become international jobs.
We talk a lot about outsourcing ... well, some of that is just because the companies that are going to where the people have the skills they need. And if those skills are in India or China or some other place, that's where they'll move those jobs.
- You can learn more about the Illinois Public Agenda for College and Career Success at 1illinois.org.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Graduation ceremonies will be occurring over the next month with one of the first being at Northern Illinois University this coming weekend. Congratulations to all the graduates and their families. I am proud to represent NIU, our community colleges and educational interests in Springfield. Whether from high school or college, graduation marks a significant accomplishment that according to statistics will return huge financial dividends and societal benefits. This is the fifth graduation class since Illinois adopted its Public Agenda for College and Career Success so it’s time to review the progress we have made toward our goal of 60 percent of the citizens with some education beyond high school. Several studies and President Obama point to the need for continued education to be prepared for the types of good paying jobs that will be available in the next decade. Currently only about 43 percent of Illinois citizens have a certificate or education degree beyond high school. The Illinois Board of Higher Education recently completed its assessment of our education progress and while finding that Illinois has made improvements, we remain far behind best performing states. Illinois is closing the high school diploma gap between Caucasians and minorities, especially in Chicago. The gap between the races is widening, however, when it comes to education beyond high school according to the report. Illinois is making strides in increasing the postsecondary education of its young adults. For older adults and especially low income students, the improvement remains behind the national average and most other states. We must do better if we are to achieve the goal of economic growth and improved family incomes in our state. If citizens in Illinois are to be prepared for jobs of the future, we must redouble our efforts toward lifelong education and achieving the public agenda (which can be found at the website: www.ibhe.org). More of us -- at all ages -- must be enrolled and graduating from a postsecondary education program. Bob Pritchard, State Representative, 70th District