KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The number of high school graduates will remain fairly flat nationwide through 2020, a new report predicts, but Michigan can expect a 12 percent decline due to outmigration and declining birth rates.
The report, “Not Just Kid Stuff Anymore: The Economic Imperative for More Adults to Complete College,” was released recently by the Center for Law and Social Policy and the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems, McClatchy News reported.
Michigan will be joined by Ohio, North Dakota, and New England states such as Massachusetts and New York in seeing the most pronounced drops, according to a McClatchy News report in The Detroit News. Conversely, Utah, Nevada and Arizona will see 25 to 35 percent more high school graduates in the next decade, the “Not Just Kid Stuff” report said.
Anticipating the decline, some colleges are already trying to boost enrollment by encouraging college dropouts to return and complete their degree and by offering more flexible scheduling and online courses, McClatchy reported.
The “Not Just Kid Stuff” authors said that while the number of high school graduates declines, the number of jobs requiring post-secondary training in Michigan and elsewhere will increase.
SOURCES:
The Detroit News, “Michigan among states facing decline in high school grads,” July 21, 2011
Center for Law and Social Policy, “Not Just Kid Stuff Anymore: The Economic Imperative for More Adults to Complete College,” June 2011
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, “Is College Accessibility Really a Problem?” Oct. 28, 2010
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