PASSHE Institutions Merging

[SW_Mustang]

Absolutely. The percentage of high school students who with a job is at the lowest point in several generations. That's not really a problem until they're learning how to be an employee in a professional role. It also opens up the menu of options for post-high school work to many students who need to know their options. That was part of the problem in Gen X and Millennials - so many assumed college was the best option after high school and other options were stigmatized. Good jobs for recent high school grads don't exist like they did pre-1980s.

I do hope that this pandemic elevates the gap year option. My oldest is only 9 but my wife and I have already decided that our kids will have 12 months from high school graduation to develop a plan of action on their career.

Bingo. I lived it.

I was told from a very early age that I had to go to college or else I'd be "flipping burgers." That's an incredible amount of pressure to put on a second grader. Turns out I hated school - it was a huge waste of time for me personally. I stumbled out of high school three weeks before my first semester of college was to begin - I had no plan or goal, because I never thought beyond "degree = $$$." It distorted my understanding of what work was worthwhile.

I certainly don't regret getting my degree - well, rather, I don't regret finishing what I started - but hindsight being 20/20, I can't say I would have gone about it the same way.

[Fightingscot82]

Of course, they could at that point tell you to F off and move out. It happens.

Well sure but I won't bankroll it.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Oh absolutely. I'm not telling them what they can study or where they must attend but they must develop a plan. But they won't be 20 years old, living at home, still working the same retail job they worked in high school because they don't have any direction.

Of course, they could at that point tell you to F off and move out. It happens.

[Fightingscot82]

Not a parent, but I do recall that the things my parents had "already decided" for their children at age 9 didn't go over so well when those children reached age 18. Just sayin' !!

Oh absolutely. I'm not telling them what they can study or where they must attend but they must develop a plan. But they won't be 20 years old, living at home, still working the same retail job they worked in high school because they don't have any direction.

[CALUPA69]

Absolutely. The percentage of high school students who with a job is at the lowest point in several generations. That's not really a problem until they're learning how to be an employee in a professional role. It also opens up the menu of options for post-high school work to many students who need to know their options. That was part of the problem in Gen X and Millennials - so many assumed college was the best option after high school and other options were stigmatized. Good jobs for recent high school grads don't exist like they did pre-1980s.

I do hope that this pandemic elevates the gap year option. My oldest is only 9 but my wife and I have already decided that our kids will have 12 months from high school graduation to develop a plan of action on their career.

Not a parent, but I do recall that the things my parents had "already decided" for their children at age 9 didn't go over so well when those children reached age 18. Just sayin' !!

[Fightingscot82]

Give a kid a lawnmower and let him cut the grass at the city park for a couple years - just do something to contribute to the community. Rack up those hours and get reduced, or even free tuition.

If we had something like that, a kid could go to a JUCO to get a trade diploma, work a PT job, and graduate with money in his bank account and a $40k-$50k/yr job easily. It would fix so many issues almost immediately. A lot of kids would take advantage too.

Absolutely. The percentage of high school students who with a job is at the lowest point in several generations. That's not really a problem until they're learning how to be an employee in a professional role. It also opens up the menu of options for post-high school work to many students who need to know their options. That was part of the problem in Gen X and Millennials - so many assumed college was the best option after high school and other options were stigmatized. Good jobs for recent high school grads don't exist like they did pre-1980s.

I do hope that this pandemic elevates the gap year option. My oldest is only 9 but my wife and I have already decided that our kids will have 12 months from high school graduation to develop a plan of action on their career.

[SW_Mustang]

I forget who the Dem presidential candidate was - maybe Pete Buttigieg - but someone proposed tying federal service to college student aid. I'm all for it. Loan forgiveness in exchange for service in the military, guard, Peace Corps, Americorps, etc. Hell bring back the CCC, CWA, WPA, etc.

Give a kid a lawnmower and let him cut the grass at the city park for a couple years - just do something to contribute to the community. Rack up those hours and get reduced, or even free tuition.

If we had something like that, a kid could go to a JUCO to get a trade diploma, work a PT job, and graduate with money in his bank account and a $40k-$50k/yr job easily. It would fix so many issues almost immediately. A lot of kids would take advantage too.

[Fightingscot82]

The high school I graduated from offered volunteering as an elective. It was simple - find an opportunity, do the paperwork for credit, and work the same amount of hours as you'd otherwise spend in class. The supervisor would report the hours to the teacher. I don't believe there were any assignments - maybe I had to write a paper or something. I'd fallen behind a few credits in school and wasn't eligible to graduate on time - so they allowed me to spend part of the summer working for a thrift store for credit. It was actually the first real work experience I had. I remember we had a heat wave that summer too - I had to unload a trailer in close to 110 degrees. I finished high school by the end of that summer and the rest is history.

Actually, it would be cool if there was a federal program that allowed people to collect community service hours and "cash them in" on reduced, or even free, college tuition. Give something to get something. Certain jobs could be incentivized over others to form a meritocracy, and there could also be incentives for choosing to attend community/technical colleges and in-state public universities. The more you put in, the more you get out.

The military is a very noble choice - but it's not for everyone, so some kind of opportunity to serve the community in other ways would be nice.

I forget who the Dem presidential candidate was - maybe Pete Buttigieg - but someone proposed tying federal service to college student aid. I'm all for it. Loan forgiveness in exchange for service in the military, guard, Peace Corps, Americorps, etc. Hell bring back the CCC, CWA, WPA, etc.

[SW_Mustang]

I'm all for national service being compulsory for graduation from high school and college. Community service is extremely important in many different ways...Builds character and a sense of ownership.

The high school I graduated from offered volunteering as an elective. It was simple - find an opportunity, do the paperwork for credit, and work the same amount of hours as you'd otherwise spend in class. The supervisor would report the hours to the teacher. I don't believe there were any assignments - maybe I had to write a paper or something. I'd fallen behind a few credits in school and wasn't eligible to graduate on time - so they allowed me to spend part of the summer working for a thrift store for credit. It was actually the first real work experience I had. I remember we had a heat wave that summer too - I had to unload a trailer in close to 110 degrees. I finished high school by the end of that summer and the rest is history.

Actually, it would be cool if there was a federal program that allowed people to collect community service hours and "cash them in" on reduced, or even free, college tuition. Give something to get something. Certain jobs could be incentivized over others to form a meritocracy, and there could also be incentives for choosing to attend community/technical colleges and in-state public universities. The more you put in, the more you get out.

The military is a very noble choice - but it's not for everyone, so some kind of opportunity to serve the community in other ways would be nice.

[WarriorVoice]

I suggest they enlist for 4 yrs then the "GI BILL " will pay for their education plus housing.

Explain how having a degree in basket weaving will help if you're living under Chinese Communist rule.

I'm all for national service being compulsory for graduation from high school and college. Community service is extremely important in many different ways...Builds character and a sense of ownership.

[Sec10-A-14]

The 2019 US Defense budget was somewhere around $686 Billion...That might be a good place to get $250 Mill...

I suggest they enlist for 4 yrs then the "GI BILL " will pay for their education plus housing.

Explain how having a degree in basket weaving will help if you're living under Chinese Communist rule.

[Fightingscot82]

Source? Surely this value varies widely for each institution, but some quick self-reported information:
Bloomsburg 42% of students live in college owned, operated or affiliated housing
Clarion 30% of students live on campus
Mansfield 57% of full-time undergraduates live on campus
Millersville 32% of students live in college owned, operated or affiliated housing
West Chester 40% of all undergraduates live on campus

Maybe it's 2 in 5 then. I can't recall where I saw that.

[WarriorVoice]

The 2019 US Defense budget was somewhere around $686 Billion...That might be a good place to get $250 Mill...

[Horror Child]

This is the best article on the possible "integrations" that I've found. It helps that its written by people who cover (and understand) higher ed, not a local newspaper writer regurgitating what they've read elsewhere then got some quotes from usual suspects.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/...-plan-redesign

As for the letter related to the original article, with all due respect to its author, he doesn't know what he's talking about. Less than 1 in 5 PASSHE students live on campus. Less than 2 in 5 live on campus or immediately adjacent to campus (off campus rental). When you close a campus, you're leaving behind 60% of the students who attend - because they commute from their permanent residence. Only in the case of Cheyney/West Chester and *maybe* California-IUP would you find someone who commutes to campus who could commute in a different direction. PASSHE students are highly sensitive to financial and geographic needs. Plus the guy's only higher education experience is teaching a statistics class at GW. He's no higher ed policy wonk.

The chancellor's presentation hit the nail on the head: the magic bullet is a radical increase in annual funding to the degree of ~$250 million increase over the current level. That's just not happening because the money isn't there nor is universal support for PASSHE's mission.

Source? Surely this value varies widely for each institution, but some quick self-reported information:
Bloomsburg 42% of students live in college owned, operated or affiliated housing
Clarion 30% of students live on campus
Mansfield 57% of full-time undergraduates live on campus
Millersville 32% of students live in college owned, operated or affiliated housing
West Chester 40% of all undergraduates live on campus

[boatcapt]

Easier said than done.

Based on the rate of fall 2019, for Clarion to get another 80 students, it would have to admit another 280 (2,622 applicants, 755 enrolled).

Clarion only turned down 131 applications last year (2,491 admitted out of 2,622 applications), so it would have to find a way to drive up applications while the number of Pennsylvania high school seniors is going down.

The hope (some would say pipe dream) is that the changes they are going to make with decrease costs meaning they will be closer to balancing their budgets AND that the changes will result in more students enrolling.

Question I have is will it just result in "rearanging the deck chairs?" Students that used to attend Mansfield for example now opt to take on-line classes at Cal/Clarion. Unless you increase the number of students coming through the PASSHE door, I fear it will just be moving numbers around.