Along with a thriving economy comes challenges. Now, don’t get me wrong—I would rather face these challenges than those we faced when unemployment was so high and economic growth was so slow. The issue we face today is growing our educated workforce to meet our economy’s needs.
We have one of the most educated workforces in the country. In fact, 48 percent of Colorado’s adults have a two-year degree or more (making us the second-most educated state in the U.S.). But, in just five short years our economy will demand 74 percent of our workers to have completed a certificate, training or degree to meet the needs of our employers. As a matter of fact, those estimates mean Colorado will have the highest anticipated education attainment levels in the U.S.
In our history, we have relied a lot on importing our educated workers. (We often call this the Colorado Paradox.) Only 18 percent of Colorado’s on-time high school graduates will go to college, graduate and enter our workforce. Whether that statistic concerns you because so many Colorado kids won’t reach their potential or the reality that we can’t sustain our economy without improving the number of college graduates, I’m guessing we all come to the same conclusion: We have to ensure more Colorado kids complete post-secondary credentials.
As a country, we invested in K-12 education because an industrialized nation needed an educated workforce—it was an economic imperative and keystone to a successful democracy. With three out of four of our kids needing to complete post-secondary credentials, higher education has now shifted into that position. It is a necessity for our economy.
It’s why the Chamber is supporting Issue 2A—a sales tax that will raise eight cents on every $100 spent, creating a $10 million fund to provide more Denver students with the resources they need to reach their educational goals and to meet our company’s workforce needs.
Public support for higher education isn’t new—states have been funding higher education since its inception. (It’s why there’s a difference between in-state tuition and out-of-state tuition costs.) Colorado currently funds higher education 48th out of 50 states in the country. We have created a diverse, vibrant, knowledge-based economy that we aren’t on track to feed what it needs most—educated workers. Our preference would be to solve this issue at the state, but the funding challenges make it a very difficult task.
The Chamber likes a number of aspects of the College Matters proposal.
It provides accountability: These funds are focused on benefiting those who actually successfully complete courses—ensuring voters are getting a return on their investment.
It allows some funds to provide support for kids going to college: It has definitely become more complex than when we all went. This program also will support kids who graduate from public and private high schools in Colorado.
It pays based on need: And it’s important to us that households earning median wages could benefit from this program.
We know the easier answer is to say these issues are somebody else’s responsibility—the kids should pay for college or their parents should cover it or the state should be responsible—but here’s the bottom line: When we are talking about an issue that affects our competitive advantage we ALL have responsibility. Please help ensure we keep Colorado’s competitive edge as home to the smartest and healthiest workforce in the country.
Kelly Brough is president and CEO of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce.
[Photo by Jessie Jacobson]