North Central State College Transforming Education

1. North Central State College Transforming Education Presented by: Ronald E. Abrams, Ed.D.

2. Our Agenda Starting the conversation: What�s the promise that higher education has made to the people of Ohio? Are we delivering on it? What can we do to improve our performance?

3. Ohio is losing too many young people along the education pipeline. For every TEN students who start high school� SEVEN will get a high school diploma (plus ONE will obtain a GED), FIVE will enroll in a postsecondary institution, But fewer than THREE will complete a Bachelor�s degree within ten years.

4. The free market is speaking: higher learning = higher earning.

5. Improvement, but Ohio hasn�t made up ground! But better is not good enough. In fact, during the past decade, our higher levels of participation and degree attainment have allowed us only to keep pace with other states. ? In 1990, Ohio ranked 39th out of 50 states in the percent of its citizens with a bachelor�s degree. ? Today, we are still 39th. We are not catching up with the nation�s leaders. This is NOT good news � and its implications for Ohio�s future economic success may be more serious than we think. But better is not good enough. In fact, during the past decade, our higher levels of participation and degree attainment have allowed us only to keep pace with other states. ? In 1990, Ohio ranked 39th out of 50 states in the percent of its citizens with a bachelor�s degree. ? Today, we are still 39th. We are not catching up with the nation�s leaders. This is NOT good news � and its implications for Ohio�s future economic success may be more serious than we think.

6. A highly skilled workforce� Income and Education But the fact is � those days have passed � and Ohio�s position of leadership is being challenged. We all know that Ohio has a wealth of riches � quality of life, a diversified economy, an abundance of natural resources, strengths in basic research, a tradition of innovation and a work ethic found nowhere else in the nation. But Ohioans� income � which once was safely above the national average � has been declining steadily during the past 40 years. Today, Ohioans� per capita income is lagging the rest of the country. In fact, this year, every man, woman and child in Ohio is earning almost $1,500 less than the average American. What�s the source of the problem? We don�t have to look very far to find some answers. A recent study by Battelle found several explanations � from the lack of new firm formation to slowness in new product innovation � and from the delayed commercialization of technology from the state�s research institutions to the failure to provide sufficient employment opportunities for advanced degree workers from Ohio�s colleges and universities. ? As we can see in this graphic � there is an even more basic explanation. Compared to the rest of the nation, Ohioans� per capita income has fallen and risen at the same rate as the percentage of the state�s population with a bachelor�s degree. ? And while comparable data have only been available since the early 1990s � and even with a substantial increase in the last decade � we are substantially below the national average in Associate Degree attainment � an increasingly important degree in a knowledge- and idea-based economy. Simply put � in an economy that is increasingly dependent on knowledge and skill, Ohio is becoming � in a relative sense � less educated � and less competitive.But the fact is � those days have passed � and Ohio�s position of leadership is being challenged. We all know that Ohio has a wealth of riches � quality of life, a diversified economy, an abundance of natural resources, strengths in basic research, a tradition of innovation and a work ethic found nowhere else in the nation. But Ohioans� income � which once was safely above the national average � has been declining steadily during the past 40 years. Today, Ohioans� per capita income is lagging the rest of the country. In fact, this year, every man, woman and child in Ohio is earning almost $1,500 less than the average American. What�s the source of the problem? We don�t have to look very far to find some answers. A recent study by Battelle found several explanations � from the lack of new firm formation to slowness in new product innovation � and from the delayed commercialization of technology from the state�s research institutions to the failure to provide sufficient employment opportunities for advanced degree workers from Ohio�s colleges and universities. ? As we can see in this graphic � there is an even more basic explanation. Compared to the rest of the nation, Ohioans� per capita income has fallen and risen at the same rate as the percentage of the state�s population with a bachelor�s degree. ? And while comparable data have only been available since the early 1990s � and even with a substantial increase in the last decade � we are substantially below the national average in Associate Degree attainment � an increasingly important degree in a knowledge- and idea-based economy. Simply put � in an economy that is increasingly dependent on knowledge and skill, Ohio is becoming � in a relative sense � less educated � and less competitive.

8. Ohio�s Challenges: Ohio in the 1960�s ranked 6th in per capita income. Today we are 35th 45% of Ohio�s adults ages 25-54 (2.2 Million) have no postsecondary education Ohio ranks 39th in associate degree and 38th in bachelor degree attainment Ohio ranks 49th in percentage of family income needed to send a child to a public four-year university

9. Ohio�s Challenges: (continued) Wal-Mart is now Ohio�s largest employer � 37,000 workers Ohio is among the lowest 10 states nationally over the past 5 years in total jobs, unemployment, and personal income 228,656 jobs were lost between 2001 and 2004; Ohio is in its 120th month below the national average in job growth. Ohio ranks 50th out of 51 states and the District of Columbia in its ability to attract and hold onto well-educated young people 19-20 yrs. old.

12. Structural budget concerns: Ohioans under-earn the average American. Ohio�s spending propensity (Medicaid, K-12 education, public safety), is at least average and growing uncontrollably. The only way to pay for at least average spending with an under-earning population is to have higher than average taxes. In a Knowledge Economy, few businesses or individuals are captive. High taxes will drive out higher earning taxpayers, leaving the remaining population with even lower average earnings. Result: Economic death spiral

13. The Reality �Today�s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach.� - Marc Prensky, Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

14. The Nontraditional Student Almost 90% of all community college students are �nontraditional� Financially independent Attends part-time Works full-time Delays enrollment after high school Has dependents Is a single-parent Does not have a high school diploma

15. More than 70% of students who first enrolled in community colleges had at least one risk factor, and 50% had two or more risk factors

16. The Challenge: We have to figure out how to serve more students, who have greater needs, to qualify for ever more sophisticated jobs, in a work environment that is changing at ever increasing rates. And we have to do this in a culture that does not generally appreciate the value or the need for education.

17. The Problem Continuing to rely on the classic academic model flies directly in the face of what we know about how people learn, the opportunities that technology presents to transform the education enterprise, and our historic record of failure with a rapidly diversifying population.

18. We must change to meet student needs, not vise-versa:  �In the past, we have tended to develop new student support programs implicitly assuming that the challenge is to help students adapt to the institution. For nontraditional and diverse students, however, the logic needs to be reversed: Institutions must seek ways in which they can change so as to accommodate the transitional and learning needs of first-generation and other nontraditional students.� � Dr. Patrick Terenzini

19. Paradigm shifts for higher education

20. Required cultural changes in Ohio

21. Call to Action The projected decline of our region can be halted through radically changing how we educate people, especially the underserved. We must think regionally. We must think transformationally. We must focus on partnerships and collaborations to gain support throughout North Central Ohio.

22. NC State Strategies for Success Focus on learning. Achieve the Dream � focus on increasing success for underserved students. Academic Quality Improvement Project (AQIP) for accreditation � emphasis on continuous improvement and systems thinking.

23. Questions & Comments