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Improved high school graduation rates are cause for celebration in the Inland Empire, but educators there are learning that more needs to be done to prepare students who wish to attend college. A recent report issued by the Public Policy Institute of California states that 88% of Inland Empire Students receive a high school diploma, which is slightly higher than the State average of 86%. However, only 57% of those students attend college, lower than the state average of 65%.
The report opines that many high school graduates have not taken the coursework necessary to attend a four-year university; moreover, the demand for manual skills in the region has been higher than the demand for college graduates, and jobs there in logistics and construction (which do not require a college degree) pay more than minimum wage.
That reality causes many high school students to question the value of going to college, especially when college likely will require incurring loans and waiting for many years to enjoy a solid return on that investment. Despite these challenges, the data continues to show that college-educated workers in the Inland Empire tend to do better financially than do workers with only a high school diploma: workers with a college degree initially earn on average 39% more than workers with only a high school diploma.
The report suggests several promising ideas to increase the options of high school students: promote early awareness and understanding of college and career options starting in middle school; align district high school diploma requirements with A-G university requirements (which may require only an additional course in math and foreign language); expand access to dual-enrollment courses; provide support for high school students from community college counselors who can assist with application, financial aid, and transfer information for students who may elect to start their college experience through junior college.
Implementation of these ideas and others could give high school students in the Inland Empire additional options when considering the paths they choose to pursue in their adult lives, and could be adopted by school districts around the state to increase the options of students Statewide.
With 4.6 million people, the Inland Empire is the third-most populated region in California—after Los Angeles County (10 million) and the San Francisco Bay Area (7.8 million); it consistently ranks among the fastest-growing regions in the state (Figure 1). With its youthful, diverse, and growing population, the Inland Empire could be an important source of new college graduates to meet the strong demand for highly educated workers in the state, which could lead to a better regional economy.