Higher Education and the Workforce

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Higher Education and the Workforce
2002 Annual Meeting

• Whats the need?
• Whats our response?

Roderick G. W. ChuOhio Board of Regents
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The Challenge
If we are to remain preeminent in transforming
knowledge into economic value, Americas
systemof higher education must remain the
worlds leader in generatingscientific and
technologicalbreakthroughs and in meeting
thechallenge to educate workers. Alan
Greenspan Chairman, Federal Reserve
System February 15, 1999
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Key Assets
The capital assets that are needed to create
wealth today are not land, not physical labor,
not machine tools and factories They are
instead knowledge assets. Thomas A. Stewart
Intellectual Capital the New Wealth of
Organizations
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Higher Learning Higher Earning
Its the market talking!
PROFESSIONAL DEGREE DOCTORATE MASTERS DEGREE
BACHELORS DEGREE ASSOCIATE DEGREE SOME
COLLEGE NO DEGREE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE LESS
THAN HIGH SCHOOL
MEDIAN EARNINGS IN 2000
Source Postsecondary Education OPPORTUNITY
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The income gap is growing
Source Postsecondary Education OPPORTUNITY
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Economic conclusion Demand for skilled workers
gt Supply and its getting worse
the most likely economic scenario suggests
there will not be enough adults with at least
some college to keep up with the growth in
demand. roughly 15 million new jobs that
require college-educated workers will be created,
resulting in a net deficit in workers with at
least some college of about 12 million workers by
2020. Anthony P. Carnevale Richard A. Fry
The Economic and Demographic Roots of
Education and Training November 19, 2001
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Yet states continue to disinvest in higher
education
Higher Education Appropriations
as of State Tax Revenues
8.5
8.0
7.5
7.0
6.5
6.0
5.5
5.0
1973
1978
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
Source Research Associates, Washington, DC
Halsted
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Why the disinvestment?

• Competing demands
• Medicaid, K-12, Prisons
• Popular support declining
• Quest for immediate gratification
• Public perceptions
• Still reaching only the elite
• Directly benefit only for a short time

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The Key Planning Question How many of our
citizens need additional education?
Surprise Hard to get a definitive answer!
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Job growth statements
68.5 percent of the fastest growing jobs require
some level of college certification.   Attribu
ted to reports from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics
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Job growth statements
Economists predict that by 2008, the number of
jobs requiring an associate's degree will grow by
31. By the year 2008, the number of jobs
requiring a bachelor's degree will grow by
24.   Center on Education Policy and
American Youth Policy Forum Higher
Learning Higher Earnings. What you need to
know about college and careers September 2001
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Job growth statements
The 20 occupations with the highest earnings all
require at least a bachelors degree. Throughout
the economy, occupations that require a college
degree are growing twice as fast as
others.   U.S. Dept. of Labor Futurework
Trends and Challenges for Work in the 21st
Century
but how many will be required?
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Caution Bad estimates
Retrospective analysis of the BLS projections by
the Bureau itself and others shows that the BLS
has underestimated the demand for workers from
two-year and four-year institutions
substantially and consistently. Anthony P.
Carnevale Richard A. Fry The Economic and
Demographic Roots of Education and
Training November 19, 2001
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Some hearsay figures
Source American Vocational Assn Guide to
School-to-Work Opportunities, 1994
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Some hearsay figuresWhere the Jobs Are

• 20 require a 4-year college degree
• 65 require an associate degree or advanced
  training
• 15 require minimum skills

• Attributed to Richard W. Judy
• author of Workforce 2020
• Hudson Institute

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In any case, its clear
Growing need
Declining support
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Other providers

• Business industry
• Human services organizations
• For-profit institutions
• K-12 vocational/adult ed

? If colleges and universities dont do
it, others will and our institutions will be
relegated to providing elite education
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Have we already lost the game?

• U.S. adults (aged 25) 194.6 M
• Adults engaged in anyformal learning
  activity 89.3 M
• Adults enrolled inpublic or privatedegree-granti
  ng institutions 5.9 M

Source NCES Digest of Education Statistics, 2001
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Questions

• More need education.But how many? What percent?
• What are the needs were not addressing today?
• Different learner populations
• Different learning abilities styles
• Different/additional knowledge/skills
• How can we educate the masses?
• What is higher educations role and
  responsibility?

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Possible SHEEO initiatives

• Share specific expert citations on workforce
  education needs
• Share workforce development strategies and
  initiatives
• Develop a rationale for various parties
  addressing workforce needs

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Strategic imperative Massify the reach of higher
education

• Majority of the population will need
  post-secondary education
• Winning providers will need to meet the specific
  needs of the market
• Cant be a Field of Dreams strategy

? The potential Become the 2nd government
function that directly and continuously serves
the needs of most taxpayers