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NEWS | August 2009 - all articles

This page includes all articles in the August issue of NEWS. Return to summary or go to the NEWS archive.

Minnesota wages increase with education but gaps exist by race
New program helps veterans choose a private college
Working with at-risk youth provides lessons about social change
Briefs

Minnesota wages increase with education but gaps exist by race

For years, research has shown a link between more education and average incomes. Census data released in January provides a look at this measure by state.

Minnesota mirrors the U.S. pattern with a few differences. Minnesotans with a professional degree have slightly higher average earnings than their U.S. counterparts. This is also true for Minnesotans with a high school credential, some college education and an associate degree. This analysis reflects averages of 2005-07 data.

There has long been a pattern of White Americans having higher earnings than Americans from other racial/ethnic groups with the same levels of education. The new census data unfortunately confirms this generally remains true in the United States and here in Minnesota. However, there are some instances where some Asian and Black Minnesotans have earnings above the White average.

The chart on the right compares wages by race/ethnicity. The red line shows average White earnings (100%). Average Asian wages exceed White wages for a graduate degree both in Minnesota and the nation. Average Asian wages for a high school credential are also higher than White wages in Minnesota. Black wages exceed White wages for graduate degree attainment in Minnesota. For the remaining U.S. comparisons, no other race/ethnicity exceeds the White wage average.

 

New program helps veterans choose a private college

When Nellie Haugen contacted the admissions office at The College of St. Scholastica this spring, she was considering taking a few classes. Haugen, who served in Iraq as a combat medic, was surprised to hear about a new veteran program that would cover her cost to attend St. Scholastica full-time.

Haugen has been accepted into St. Scholastica’s Health Information Management program and will start fall semester. Not only will her tuition be paid by these new benefits, but she’ll also receive help with housing and childcare costs. “I didn’t know this program existed,” Haugen said. “I was getting a decent amount from the regular GI bill, but that would not have allowed me to go to St. Scholastica.”

The Post-9/11 GI Bill and the complementary Yellow Ribbon Education Enhancement Program went into effect on Aug. 1. The GI Bill itself is one of the most extensive educational assistance programs since the original GI Bill in 1944. For students at public and private institutions, it covers costs equal to the highest in-state undergraduate tuition and fee. The Yellow Ribbon component covers costs that go beyond this amount at private institutions.

The institutions that have chosen to participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program, including 14 Minnesota Private College Council members, decide how many undergraduate and graduate awards they will give and the amount of tuition benefit they will contribute. This amount is matched by the Veterans Administration (VA). For many veterans, this will cover the full amount of tuition.

The bill makes it possible for veterans to choose a private college, if that’s the best fit for them, said Clarence Sharpe, director of transfer admissions at St. Scholastica. Sharpe — a vet himself — has worked with veterans on his campus for years. He notes that they often have more maturity and self-discipline than the college’s typical freshman. “Their life experience has helped them decide what they want to do; they’re pretty focused,” he said. “Private colleges can offer them an environment that meets their needs, like smaller classes and closer relationships with faculty and other students.”

“The program provides a wonderful opportunity,” said Ginny Reese, associate director of student financial services at the University of St. Thomas. The program may be complicated for financial aid offices initially she said, while they work out the kinks. “This is a very generous program that will make it possible for more veterans to attend an institution like St. Thomas,” Reese said.

Reese provided this example showing benefits an undergraduate student might receive for a semester at St. Thomas:

 

16 credits St. Thomas tuition	$14,472.00
Student service and technology fees	$ 261.50
Total tuition and fees	$14,733.50
Post-9/11 GI Bill tuition and fee benefit	$12,261.50*
Remaining amount	$2,472.00
St. Thomas Yellow Ribbon Award	$1,236.00**
VA Yellow Ribbon Match	$1,236.00
Net cost for veterans	$0

 

*GI Bill benefits in Minnesota provide $750 per credit
**St. Thomas Yellow Ribbon program will provide 50% of remaining tuition and fee charges. The VA will match the St. Thomas amount.

Kathy Ruby, financial aid director at St. Olaf College, was also enthusiastic about the new programs. “It’s a great opportunity for us to leverage federal dollars for students. And it’s a good thing for these families when you think of the sacrifices they have made.” Six St. Olaf students have been certified so far to receive Yellow Ribbon benefits — all happen to be dependents of veterans, Ruby said.

Ruby noted that the GI Bill and Yellow Ribbon Program haven’t changed St. Olaf’s veteran population yet. “We wonder if it will…and we’re happy to help if it does.”

Read about student-veterans at St. Catherine University in the May 2009 story in SCAN magazine, Near Normal. 

Working with at-risk youth provides lessons about social change

Editor’s Note: This article is written by Jennifer Page Kramm, 2008-10 Phillips scholar, reporting on her summer project experience. Phillips scholars design and implement an project to address unmet needs in Minnesota.

As an intern for the Leaders for Social Change program this summer, I partnered with an after-school program that provides free summer programming for youth at-risk for graduating from high school. Students are “at-risk” if they are part of the special education program, learned English as a second language and/or have low incomes. The program provides learning activities in the morning with licensed teachers and enrichment activities in the afternoon for kindergarten through eighth grade students. I focused on service-learning efforts during the enrichment portion, provided culturally sensitive educational opportunities and developed student leadership.

“In social change you begin at A and end at Z,” said Mary Carlsen, a professor of social work and family studies at St. Olaf who served as my academic advisor this summer. “At the beginning of the summer you started at A. By the end of the summer you should get to D.” Carlsen explained that social change is a process of building upon previous efforts, and the initial stages of change are the slowest. Not only does social change take time, but it takes collaboration between diverse sets of contributors. It takes people power. Having finished a summer advancing social change, I couldn’t agree more.

Part of achieving social change requires the making and strengthening of relationships — which happened between the staff of Summer PLUS and the students. Students opened up to loving adults about their passions and challenges and had the opportunity to express their thoughts. For example, one project included readings and discussions about the need for elderly care homes. During the discussions, cultural differences surfaced and were evaluated. After preparation, students visited an elderly care center and asked the residents questions. Students responded to the experience by creating a mural to thank the residents for their time that featured the student’s interests and dreams. It was apparent through the student’s excitement in the discussions, engagement during the visit and reflection that service-learning was meaningful for their own lives and for building relationships. 

Relationships from this summer will spill over into the school year through a mentoring program at St. Olaf that serves many of the same students as the summer program. Reaching Our Goals (ROG) is a Latino mentoring program that was created in the summer of 2000 by the last Phillips Scholar from St. Olaf, Kirstan Ketter. Nine years later I have the privilege of continuing her work by co-directing the program that she founded. This coming school year ROG hopes to continue to empower youth by fostering relationships between college mentors and Latino youth.

Our larger goal is to create genuine and sustained relationships in the community to respond to the needs and interests of all parties no matter how timid their voice. The change that we hope for will take years. But this summer I have seen the potential for change, and know that someday we will reach Z — as in the end of the alphabet when graduation names are read off, and “at-risk” students of Northfield are included in the walk to receive diplomas.

I offer deepest thanks to The Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation for making this experience possible. Thanks to the Center for Experiential Learning’s Leaders for Social Change program, made possible by the Lilly Grant Program, for deeply enriching this experience and providing significant support. Finally, sincerest appreciation to Northfield community members who have modeled how to meaningfully engage in the lives of others.

Briefs

• Minnesota Private College Week, held in June on all 17 campuses, attracted 2,300 students for tours and general information sessions.
• Transfer Days — for students interested in transferring to a Minnesota private college or university — will be held at community college campuses in late September and October.
• 90 private college students from five institutions participated in the TRiO McNair Scholars program this summer. The program encourages low-income, first-generation, and minority undergraduates to prepare for doctoral study and consider careers in college teaching.
• ACT results show Minnesota high school students had the highest average scores in the nation. Still, 68% of the test takers in Minnesota failed to meet college-ready standards. See Minnesota Office of Higher Education summary.