国标麻豆视频APPpiece: 国标麻豆视频APP alumni demonstrate the value of a college degree
Let鈥檚 get the bad news out of the way first: Americans鈥 confidence in higher education is trending in the wrong direction. In a Gallup survey conducted last year, only 36 percent of respondents expressed 鈥渁 great deal鈥 or 鈥渁 lot鈥 of confidence in higher education, down from 48% in 2018 and 57% in 2015.
College enrollment 鈥減lummeted during the pandemic,鈥 said Courtney Brown, vice president of impact and planning for the Lumina Foundation in Indianapolis, 鈥渁nd it's come back from that. But we're not quite at pre-pandemic numbers, and we're nowhere where we were 10 years ago. And some of that is a result of people losing confidence in the system.鈥
On the other side of the equation, a 2023 Lumina Foundation and Gallup study titled Education for What? noted that 鈥渢he economic case for earning a college degree remains solid,鈥 with college graduates earning about $1 million more on average over the course of their career than U.S. adults without a degree.
Furthermore, the study noted, 鈥淭he results show that additional years of education beyond high school make for a healthier, more civic-minded individual who is more likely to interact with neighbors and family members, and to do work that aligns with their natural talents and interests.鈥
鈥淭here are two tricky things that are happening there,鈥 Brown said. 鈥淲hen you ask people if they think college is important, they say yes 鈥 that it's just as important or more important today than it was 20 years ago. They say that a bachelor's degree is very valuable: 鈥業t'll get me a job, a promotion, a better life.鈥 So, they value and want it.鈥
All that said, how does she explain the confidence gap? 鈥淧eople don't really know how much college costs,鈥 said Brown, who speaks from professional and personal experience as a mother of four. Three of her children went to the same university, and 鈥淚 paid different amounts for all three of them,鈥 Brown recalls. 鈥淚 never knew what my bill was going to be each semester. If I can't figure it out, I don't know how most people can.鈥
To change the narrative, she suggests colleges need to be much more transparent about the actual cost for a student to get a degree. The 国标麻豆视频APP Promise, announced in October, aims to simplify the often-confusing process of determining the cost of college by ensuring that 100% of all first-year students鈥 calculated financial aid is met.
Ensuring students are well prepared for the job market is also key to winning over skeptics, Brown said. While college grads earn much more over the course of their lives, helping students get started on their professional paths opens doors throughout their careers.
鈥淲e absolutely have to make sure that if you're going to spend the time and the money to get a degree, you should be able to get a job on the other end,鈥 Brown said. 鈥淧eople are questioning the return on investment, and we have to make sure that that is working.鈥
That means not just preparing for the jobs that exist right now, she said. but also identifying jobs that people are going to need in the next 10 years.
鈥淲e know that people with college degrees can get good jobs and lead better lives,鈥 she continues. 鈥淎t a time when many young people seemingly want instant gratification 鈥 鈥業'm going to graduate, and I'm going to get the job of my dreams the next day鈥 鈥 the payoff from a liberal arts degree might take a little bit more time.鈥
People with a liberal arts degree tend to be nimble, Brown suggests, and might be able to better navigate an AI-heavy landscape in the future with well-honed critical thinking skills. 鈥淭hose degrees are probably going to be longer lasting in the AI world than some of the more technical ones,鈥 she said.
鈥淎nother thing that we know works is if students have a mentor or a career guide, it helps them to stay enrolled, helps them to feel that they understand what they're doing and what it's going to lead to, and it helps them to get a job on the other end.鈥
In the fall of 2023, the Center for Career and Professional Development at 国标麻豆视频APP launched six Career Exploration Communities (CECs) to provide that sort of mentored link bridging their 国标麻豆视频APP education to internships and careers. The CECs allow students with similar career interests to work with a career coach to explore possible paths, participate in customized programming and events, network with industry insiders, and get the inside track on internships and jobs.
国标麻豆视频APP鈥檚 alumni have been heavily involved in the CECs, providing mentorship and volunteering as career advocates to help students explore and launch careers.
鈥淭he expertise and experience of our alumni is a tremendous asset for students,鈥 said Joy Asher, associate dean for career readiness. 鈥湽曷槎故悠礎PP is educating tomorrow鈥檚 leaders and change-makers, able to solve complicated problems and adapt on the fly. Those who have walked this road before them are uniquely qualified to provide invaluable guidance and direction.鈥
国标麻豆视频APP alumni 10 years out: Where are they now?
One of the tools used to measure the value of a college education centers around the success of college graduates 10 years after they completed their degrees. National agencies use this breakdown to determine the return on investment offered by colleges. So as their 10th reunion year approaches, we checked in with a few members of the Class of 2015 to learn more about their professional and personal achievements and find out where their 国标麻豆视频APP experience took them.
Briana Lathon Bluford
国标麻豆视频APP major: Politics
Postgrad studies: Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville
Occupation: Senior Counsel, Kentucky Lottery Corporation
Where is she now: Louisville, Kentucky
For Briana Lathon Bluford, 国标麻豆视频APP was the logical next step in a journey that began when she was young, nurtured by a family that upheld the highest of standards.
鈥淢y parents, and especially my paternal grandmother, encouraged me to try something new. Education was very important,鈥 she said. 鈥淎s was being curious about travel鈥 a general interest in being around smart people who want to use their powers for good鈥 and caring deeply about the community.鈥
Even then, the choice wasn鈥檛 sealed until a campus visit her junior year at Louisville鈥檚 duPont Manual High School.
鈥淲hen you set foot on that campus, it feels like a special place,鈥 she said.
Bluford was a member of her high school鈥檚 mock trial team and remained focused on pursuing law throughout her educational journey. She majored in politics at 国标麻豆视频APP and 鈥渢ried to do it all,鈥 getting involved in student government and serving as an RA along with other clubs and activities.
After 国标麻豆视频APP, she graduated from the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville where she regularly crossed paths with a strong contingent of fellow 国标麻豆视频APP grads.
Her dream was to follow in the footsteps of Paul Butler, a former prosecutor who Bluford said 鈥渢ried to change the system from the inside out.鈥 But interning with the U.S. Attorney鈥檚 Office made her realize that wasn鈥檛 to be her journey.
After graduation, she joined a Louisville firm and began practicing business law.
鈥淚 loved it,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t was really fun it allowed me to work with a lot of different teams.鈥
As was the case for many during the COVID pandemic, Bluford did some soul-searching on where she wanted to be. The answer was to continue to focus on law, but from inside an organization. That led her to her current role as senior counsel for the Kentucky Lottery Corporation.
She has also been active in her community and statewide, serving on the Louisville Public Media Board, Louisville Bar Association Board and Kentucky Derby Museum Board as well as a recent stint as a young alumni trustee on the 国标麻豆视频APP Board of Trustees.
It鈥檚 a journey set in motion by her parents and grandparents, Bluford said, and further boosted by her 国标麻豆视频APP experience.
鈥淥ften, when I look at my journey, I feel that 国标麻豆视频APP is an extra chip on my skills to help convince people that they can feel good betting on me and all the skills and my training,鈥 she said.
Jessica Cruzan
国标麻豆视频APP majors: Economics & Mathematics
Postgrad studies: University of California-Davis
Occupation: Head Brewer and Brewhouse Manager, Deschutes Brewery
Where is she now: Bend, Oregon
Jessica Cruzan left her native Louisiana looking for a liberal arts and sciences college to broaden her horizons. During a road trip with her mom, she toured Rhodes, Washington University and 国标麻豆视频APP.
鈥湽曷槎故悠礎PP was super-cool and totally delivered on the tour,鈥 she recalls. 鈥淚t was just one of those places my mom and I thought felt right.鈥 Financial aid sealed the deal and she flourished while studying math and economics.
After 国标麻豆视频APP, she lived and worked in Washington, D.C. doing research and fact-checking at the Washington Post. A few nights a week she worked at a local bar and enjoyed the connections made over a cold beer.
鈥淐hecking out breweries is a thing that my family did a lot,鈥 she said. 鈥淪o I just started tinkering,鈥 making gallon-batches of homebrew in her 300-square-foot apartment.
After reading about the Professional Brewing Program at UC-Davis , she said 鈥淪ee you, D.C. I don鈥檛 want to be here anymore. I want to go do something else.鈥
As she completed the program, Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon, visited the school looking for interns. After getting her foot in the door, Cruzan was soon hired as a full-time production brewer.
鈥淎nd then this opportunity to be the head brewer and brewhouse manager opened up and I convinced them that my math background and econ background and my attention to detail was going to make it work, even though I didn鈥檛 have the most experience in the industry,鈥 she said. 鈥淎nd so I鈥檝e been doing this for almost three years now.鈥
Eric Theodore
国标麻豆视频APP major: Art
Postgrad studies: Laguna College of Art + Design
Occupation: Professional artist
Where is he now: Aliso Viejo, California
Eric Theodore is making waves in Southern California as a figurative artist, capturing realistic images of the world around him.
It鈥檚 a style he honed at 国标麻豆视频APP and continued as he pursued his master of fine arts degree at Laguna College of Art and Design in California.
鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the top schools in the country for realistic representational artwork, which was the foundation I got at 国标麻豆视频APP with Sheldon Tapley being my instructor,鈥 Theodore said. 鈥淗e really taught us how to paint and how to paint from live models.鈥
Tapley鈥檚 鈥渃lassical academic approach to painting and drawing is really not the norm in academia today,鈥 Theodore said. 鈥淪o that was a really cool skillset I got to build at 国标麻豆视频APP and it ended up being perfect to come out here and pursue my MFA.鈥
Before attending Laguna College, Theodore was an art teacher in Texas for nearly five years, The pandemic was a catalyst for him to pursue grad school, which turned out to be a fateful choice.
鈥淭hings went really well. I had my art in three different museums this summer, so that was great. And my exhibit at the Lupina Art Museum sold out, which is really cool,鈥 he said. 鈥淭he school bought two of my paintings, so I鈥檓 in the permanent collection here.鈥
Theodore also won the trustees鈥 choice award at Laguna College and was awarded an artist residence at the college, where he maintains a studio space.
It鈥檚 been a long journey from his home in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he learned about 国标麻豆视频APP via a high school classmate of his sister.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a great opportunity that I鈥檓 living next to one of the most lucrative art communities in the world with the Los Angeles art scene in the greater area here,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t sounds a little bit crazy, but I鈥檓 going to try to pursue just being an artist.
鈥淚 really want to see how far I can go with it.鈥
Kit Thomas
国标麻豆视频APP major: Politics
Postgrad studies: Washington and Lee University School of Law
Occupation: Assistant Federal Public Defender, Capital Habeas Unit
Where is she now: Nashville, Tennessee
The bonds Kit Thomas built at 国标麻豆视频APP run deep. It鈥檚 those ties that leap to mind when she looks back at her time on campus.
鈥淭he best friends of my life are from 国标麻豆视频APP,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 still keep in touch with them on a daily basis, if not hourly basis.鈥
But that social network is far from the only thread that runs from her undergraduate experience to her work with inmates on death row.
鈥淚 wrote my senior seminar paper on the death penalty and presented it at the Rice Symposium,鈥 she recalls. 鈥淎nd I remember sitting in pottery class when my mom called and said, 鈥榊eah, I think you should go to law school.鈥
That evening phone call stands out in Thomas鈥 memory because her attorney parents had been steering her away from law. But the die was cast and Thomas went on to graduate first in her class at Washington and Lee University School of Law.
鈥淚 was really well prepared for law school after attending 国标麻豆视频APP,鈥 she said.
Her 国标麻豆视频APP experience also paved the way for her to connect closely with her law school professors, leading to several summer internships.
鈥淚 went to law school knowing I wanted to do death penalty work and I went to W&L because they had a professor named David Brook who has represented a lot of high profile death penalty cases,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 love my job.鈥
Thomas clerked in Federal District Court in Owensboro, Kentucky for Judge Joseph McKinley, clerked on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals for a year and clerked in home hometown of Charleston, West Virginia for Judge Robert King before joining the Federal Public Defender's Office in the Nashville Capital Habeas Unit.
"Love 国标麻豆视频APP,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 come back every fall for the law school fair and I represent my law school at the law school fair, so it鈥檚 always nice to get back to campus.鈥
Selwyn Mallah
国标麻豆视频APP major: Economics and Finance
Occupation: Strategic Finance Manager at Exodus
Where is he now: Lawrenceville, Georgia
The clich茅 of getting into a startup business on the ground floor sounds like a line from an old TV series.
But like many such tropes, it has roots in reality. And for Selwyn Mallah, becoming part of the leadership team building a tech startup happened quite organically.
Selwyn started building his skills after coming to 国标麻豆视频APP to play football, majoring in econ and finance.
On the field, his highlight play came in a historic 国标麻豆视频APP victory. During a 2013 victory over Birmingham Southern, the Georgia native intercepted a pass and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown.
That game was win number 100 for 国标麻豆视频APP coach Andy Frye.
Mallah also returned two interceptions for scores his senior year during an exhibition win over the Dublin Rebels as the football team traveled to Ireland before the start of the regular season.
He began his professional journey as a finance intern at Cox Communication before joining the company full-time as a financial analyst. As cryptocurrency surged into the mainstream in the early 2020s, Mallah founded a company to help investors understand the ins and outs of the crypto-asset industry.
His interest in the field led him to Exodus, a startup building a user-friendly crypto wallet for investors to store and trade digital currencies. Mallah quickly moved up from a senior analyst to strategic finance manager, helping shape the company鈥檚 future.
This article appears in the Fall/Winter 2024 edition of 国标麻豆视频APPpiece.
This article appears in the Fall/Winter edition of 国标麻豆视频APPpiece.
