Ohio must keep college in reach

With the middle of the summer vacation rapidly approaching, mid-July marks the downward spiral toward facing another school year.
Recent high school graduates face even more uncertainty compared with their predecessors.
Summer months typically allow for high school graduates to begin developing a nest egg toward paying for college, but recent graduates are facing more difficulty finding summer jobs.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, unemployment among teenagers rose from 16 percent to 17.1 percent in the second quarter of 2002. Summer jobs normally reserved for teenagers are being filled by unemployed adults seeking employment as adult unemployment rates rose to 5.9 percent.
Planning for college needs to begin early.
Preparing financially must be stressed as much as academics. It is not enough to apply to college and wait for a windfall of scholarships, subsidies and grants to be thrown your way.
Nearly $120 million has been cut from Ohio's public higher education budget for fiscal year 2002. More than $300,000 worth of financial aid has been canned.
Locally, Youngstown State University suffered a $3 million budget cut. (Editor's note: An additional cut of $2.7 million was approved last week.)
More than half of YSU's budget is funded through tuition. Unless YSU trustees work together to find a reasonable remedy to the budget crunch, YSU's trend of increased enrollment will end.
Huge investment
It is no mystery that a college education is a large investment. Between tuition, books, supplies and other expenses, the total cost of education is much higher than what students pay to the college. Although student and parent loans are available, they come with a price tag.
Higher education not only benefits the student's future, but benefits society and the economy. Studies have shown that students with a college degree earn more. Increased incomes will result in increased tax payments.
The Ohio Board of Regents must carefully consider to what extent to place higher education's funding on the butcher block.
The average household income is around $19,000 in the Youngstown city school district. That's 15 percent less than the average income in similar school districts.
For a graduate of a Youngstown public high school living in a household with average income, it will cost at least 26 percent of a family's income to pay for a year's tuition at YSU.
Keep goal obtainable
Continuing education through collegiate studies must continue to be a goal obtainable by all students. High school is only a sampling of educational opportunities.
Shallow pockets should not hamper students' deep desires for a college education.
The state of Ohio must continue to vigorously support its state universities instead of shifting increased responsibility to cash-strapped universities and students.
As YSU advertises, "Your success is our goal."
But at what price will higher education top off in Ohio?
XJason graduated in June from Cardinal Mooney High School and plans to study journalism at Youngstown State University this fall.