Choices define who we are, affecting our career goals, dreams and even how we handle challenges in life. Last week, I had the opportunity to talk with ninth and tenth grade students at Parkview and Hillcrest high schools in Springfield about how going to college can provide them with nearly limitless choices and help fulfill their dreams.
Growing up in a poor family in a small Texas town, my parents and I knew my choices would be limited if I didn’t attend college. Going to college opened up choices for me that led me to do research at NASA and, eventually, to my current job as chancellor of the University of Missouri.
In recent years, major news outlets have reported on trends in higher education, including increasing student debt or declining job placement rates, with examples that focus on the extreme instead of the typical. Additionally, studies have shown that Missourians don’t feel like they are getting a good return on their investment in higher education. I passionately disagree with this stance.
Studies consistently show that college graduates earn about $1.6 million more in their lifetimes than those without a college degree. Moreover, college graduates tend to pass on their lifetime prosperity to the next generation.
Take, for example, Shawn Askinosie, who graduated from MU. As owner of Askinosie Chocolate in Springfield, Askonsie mentors high school students through his “Chocolate University,” teaching the students business practices and how he uses his success to battle malnutrition in remote areas of the world. He credits his college education with providing him the foundation for and the freedom of choice to make his dream of helping people a reality.
Reviewed 2015-03-11