Part II
In
a series of essays on this blog site we examine the factors that determine
family stability or instability, which as we previously wrote, are namely
income and a few socio-cultural trends. We stress that these factors do not
form a neat equation nor does one of the factors necessarily cause another;
simply that a few stability factors parallel one another.
The Geography Variable
First,
wages and cost of living vary from state-to-state, from region-to-region. New
York City is, for example, higher income and higher cost; Mississippi or
Alabama is lower income and lower cost. To have a top 1% income in the New York
City region requires nearly $1.4million annual (much higher for the top 1/10th%).
Meanwhile, an annual income of about $100,000 equals top 1% in parts of
Mississippi and Alabama.
Second, higher income families are
concentrated within specific metropolitan areas and specific areas of a state.
So too, lower income families are concentrated within certain city
neighborhoods, certain rural areas or certain state regions. In the
mythological Lake Wobegon Chatterbox Café, an unemployed farmhand can sit at a
table with the town banker. That is unlikely anywhere else. Higher income
people do not share the same space as middle income or lower income people—not
even at the football stadium, or the airport, or at church.
Third, some commentators refer to
cultural/political geography. They mean our country can be divided (or
color-coded) into, on one hand, East Coast and West Coast and, on the other
hand, Middle America. This essay and its accompanying income chart imply that such
geographical politics is metaphorical at best. Our important concern is
stability for the majority of families—East Coast, West Coast and Middle
America.
The Education Variable
Prior
to 1980 young adults in our country were adequately educated to meet the needs
of the marketplace. That is, a sufficient number had sufficient education in
the trades, accounting, secretarial skills, engineering and more. Since 1980
the needs of employers have steadily outpaced educational attainment. Thus, as
is often said today, a college degree is a necessity. The word degree is crucial.
With individual exceptions, income
strongly parallels a college degree: Those who have a degree also have some family
security and a modicum of upward mobility. Those without a degree more likely
experience instability and remain stuck at their family’s income level.
There are two related points to make
about a college degree and income.
First, those young adults whose parents
hold a degree are more likely to attend college than other young adults and
they are much more likely to complete college. A young adult whose parents did
not complete college is not as likely to enroll in college or once enrolled is
more likely to drop out. Mentioning this college degree gap feels un-American
because education is thought to be an economic leveler. A young adult who
studies and works hard can, the theory says, do better economically than the
previous generation. According to the American promise, no one is condemned to
their parents’ income level. Unfortunately, this promising theory has not been
the reality. Those born between 1960 and 1980 have, on average, a 60% chance of
exceeding their parents’ income. Those born after 1980 have, on average, a 50%
chance of ever exceeding their parents.
The second related point tells us that
not all college degrees are equal. About 8% of those billionaires who hold a
U.S. passport also have a Harvard University degree. Other Ivy League schools
account for a similar percentage of billionaires. The remaining top 10% in
income also hold degrees from Ivy League or major state colleges or in fewer
cases from one of the well-known Catholic colleges. On the next step down, that
of an aspiring upper-middle class family, the student’s degree comes from a
Catholic college or a less prestigious state school; followed by other schools,
public and private.
A quick digression about dropping out of
college: In a public, four-year college about 60% obtain a degree within six
years; about 40% have dropped out. In a private, four-year college the
graduation rate is about 65% within six years; about 35% never finish.
A community college can be a start, but
the full bachelor’s degree is the factor that parallels a better income. In
Illinois, to take one example, only about 21% of community college students
complete a program there within three years. Of those who begin at a community
college only about 15% go on to a bachelor’s degree within six to eight years.
Why do students drop out? Tuition
becomes too expensive; the tension between studies and a job becomes
unmanageable; someone in the family is ill; the student or spouse loses a job;
a baby is born. As significantly, though not as frequently discussed, is a
student’s lack of confidence in study habits like perseverance, curiosity,
concentration, resourcefulness, creativity and more. They are unprepared to
take apart a textbook, to know what is important in class and what is not so
important, to write paragraphs that flow one from the other, to stick with a
problem, to manage time knowing when to take overtime on the job and when to
concentrate on school. Rather than confidently finding help with their studies,
too many students drift away.
To be continued…
