...Pros and Cons of Today's College Education Student’s name: Institutional affiliation: The current state of higher education in United States In the recent past, the state of higher education in the United States has been under the spotlight of deteriorating quality, high costs and turnover rates. The top and bottom divisions of United States institutions of higher learning have become so dissimilar from each other that they have stopped being the single coherent social institution. Institutions belonging to the top strata have values, missions, funding and personnel that are different from those at the bottom. Universities and colleges that are in the middle class are torn between these extremes. Universities in the top strata have become a preserve for the minority few who are affluent. Attending universities like Harvard has been left to the few who can afford to pay the exorbitant fees. The divisions arising in institutions of higher learning have come to be viewed as a show of might and class, as well as a means by which the American plutarchy duplicates itself. Donoghue (nd) notes that top strata universities’ one year tuition fee is more than the average income of American citizens. Universities in the middle and bottom classes are continually grappling with budget cuts as the government strives to sustain the budget in times of economic downturns. Budget cuttings have severe implications for public colleges and universities as universities have to raise their...
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...Case Study: Economic Crisis and Higher Education in the United States The 2008–2012 economic failure is considered by many economists and investors to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It results in the risk of total collapse from big financial firms, the bailout of banks by national governments, and downturns in stock markets around the world. The crisis also plays a significant role in the crash of key businesses and collapse of housing market, results in the delayed unemployment. Higher education is a large and various venture in the United States, which has impacted by the economic recession in a number of ways, but these impacts have not been the same and vary depending on state and type of institution. Most higher education traditions started to be concerned about their financial problems due to economic recession. Their main source of revenue has been hurt by the downturn, and that those universities would need to make hard decisions about how to spend their money. In some states, a lot of institutions are in process of fund-raising programs to avoid delaying their supported campus building projects. Many of higher education university’s leaders have been considering and solving of two following questions: How is the economic downturn affecting institutions both public and private? What strategies are leaders implementing to guide their institutions? Unsuccessful budget strategies are the main reason that caused many...
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...A shift in the way the United States prepares students for life after high school is long overdue. The U.S. education system currently fails to prepare many young Americans to lead successful adult lives because our preparation strategy is narrow, focused on readying students to attend four-year colleges and universities. As a result, many youth leave high school no more fit to succeed in college than to thrive in the world of work. Even though high school schedules lack job related courses, vocational school prepares you more for the workforce than conventional high school because the curriculums are hands on based and vocational education combines theory and realistic approaches. There is a need for more effective approach that supports the American system. We must offer young people in high school and beyond multiple pathways to success, instead of putting so much emphasis on attending a four-year college. Engaging employers into crucial work of preparing young people for success, such as providing career counseling and offering opportunities for work-based learning and actual employment and create a new social compact with youth, in which key stakeholders in a state or region educators, employers, and government officials -- pledge to collaboratively improve pathways for those who are now being left behind. The structure and demographics of today’s high schools states that forty percent of white students attend high schools that is 90 percent or more...
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...American culture, value is often dictated through the money one has and the possessions one owns. There is a constant goal to have more. The more things you have, the more you are worth, and the more you can rest safe and assured that you are doing well. Like a bubble, your infinitive collection of things acts as a safety net. Perhaps this mindset contributes to the lack of equivalence in the discretionary spending of the national budget. Money is aimed towards excessive military efforts, which could provide a sense of stability and protection for the American people as the military is given money and remains heavily stocked and prepared for battle. The national budget is a distribution of money from the government to various publicly funded areas such as international affairs, veterans’ benefits, social security, and other areas like Medicare and health or even the government itself. The federal spending is broken down into mandatory spending, discretionary spending, and money from interest on debt. Mandatory spending is not regulated like a typical budget, and is instead derived from...
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...academically and as a confident, compassionate citizen with impeccable character and a global perspective through engaging, personally challenging, and relevant experiences that inspire learning for life”. Live Honorably Act Humbly Model Dignity Change Concept How cuts in the Texas budget will affect the students, teachers and substitute teachers in Alamo Heights Independent School District. The budget cuts were originated of three main components: • 2006 the state lowered property taxes (school taxes by 1/3). • The state used Federal stimulus money to pay raises all teachers’ salaries in the state. • The current recession has cause lower tax revenue. How badly it is? The state of Texas is projected to have a $27 billion deficit for the next two year, the US House of Representative bill was unveil in January and designate a $10 billion dollars cut in public education state-wide. This cuts will have a significant impact in all schools district in Texas (including Alamo Heights Independent School District) for the next two or three years. Some people talk about why don’t the schools district rely in the lottery count, and the answer is, because the lottery count is less that 2% of the revenue for education and this don’t even goes to schools, goes to the general...
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...Every year, throughout the United States, children from age four to 21, began the new process of receiving a free and appropriate education. From August to September, depending on what state you live in, public schools open its doors to receive students who represent all demographic areas. While parents and students attempt to handle the financial concerns of purchasing clothes and supplies for the school year, a little stress is attached to how much the education they expect to receive will cost. Since 1965, through the legislative process, the federal, state, and local government assumed the responsibility for funding public schools (U.S. Department of Education, 2014). In an article completed by the Public Broadcasting System (Public Broadcasting System [PBS], 2008), the federal government allocates approximately ten cents to every dollar to education toward public education. The state and local governments supply the remaining money needed for public education to the 14,000 school districts throughout the United States who allocated the funds to the primary and secondary schools (PBS, 2008). Public education is the largest area of expense for the state in local governments around the United States accounting for approximately one-fifth of its budget (Moore, 2011). For example, in 2014, the state of Florida spent a total of 77 billion dollars out of which 29.9 percent was allocated to school districts around the state (Office of Policy and Budget, 2014). To determine how...
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...great again. We already put enough into the military budget; the United States should focus on other government programs like health care, infrastructure, and education. There is absolutely no reason to increase the military budget when our military is already the biggest military in the world and the military budget is already bigger than...
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...Shana Sanders English 1301 Making the cut When considering making a budget cut for the state why is that we go right to education. If we all know that education is one of the main factors to help better our society, why is it when we need to make cuts to help keep Texas running. This decision doesn’t make sense to the common person so why is it congress to agree so easily on these cuts. Texas is currently looking at a 27 billion short fall for the next two years, which means a 9.6 billion cut to public schools and 375,000 loosed jobs. What kind of an impact are these cuts going to have on the future of our children and society? If Texas is in the budget crisis it’s in now, how will it proceed to get any better if education is the first to be impacted? One of the first programs looking at cuts in education is the Pre-K program in Public schools. When one thinks of Pre-K, what one may consider is what kind of importance is this program provides for our children. When one thinks of what consist in the day of preschooler; typically one thinks of coloring and playing and maybe even snack. Really in reality the children in these programs are learning a lot from one another and their teachers. Most of the children in these types of programs are Hispanic (99%) and economically disadvantaged (86%), taking away or cutting the program could affect these children with being ready for public school. Being that majority of the children are Hispanic, English is either a second language...
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...Budgeting in Justice and Security December 16, 2013 Professor Michael Scott Influences within Public Programs Education is an important factor to succeed. With the declining economy it is more difficult anyone to gain steady unemployment and to even get a job these days a high school diploma is needed. People could get a job with having only their G.E.D. or not having any type of education at all. The economy’s downfall has had an effect on public education which is causing budget cuts within schools. This effect has educators, parents, and district board members worried about how this would affect not only the students, but the employees as well. Being that the country of America is already behind in the levels of education, people want to understand why the government takes away funds from the schools and the various education programs. Our education system has been suffering due to the trend of education cutbacks. How do schools expect our students to succeed to the highest level if schools cannot have a decent budget? The status of schools in America need to become better and students deserve the best education possible. In the state of South Carolina the Hampton County School District Two has been exploring options to generate revenue and cut expenditures for most of the year. A board meeting was held on Tuesday, November 19, 2013 to discuss how budget cuts have had an effect on the elementary, middle, and high schools within the district. Sixteen employees have already...
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...Gates’ that the United States needs to make a commitment to increase educational spending for younger generations. In recent years, state governments have been making significant cuts to state education in an effort to work to reduce the United States’ 10% deficit per year. Bill Gates argues that the long term equity from spending on education and healthcare far outweighs the equity from spending in other governmental areas. Gates’ solution to the problem is simple. His first proposal revolves around the idea of upgrading our tools and technology. In a country that spends more on education than most other countries, his ideas here are well deserved. Next, Gates believes that accounting for schools should be closer to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and should be clear and honest. Gates argues that the current accounting method for schools follows a “buy now, pay later,” mentality. And, finally, Gates preaches that Politicians should be rewarded for their efforts to reduce the deficit. States have used many different methods to hide their ‘budget balancing’ accounting practices. Moreover, in future years, educational spending is projected to go up, perpetuating the already monumental educational budget deficit. This ongoing ‘debt clock’ should raise red flags to State Legislators to this systemic problem. Unfortunately, the only way to accommodate future generations and safeguard them from inheriting a massive educational debt, is to cut education spending in half...
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...1. More than $180 million have been cut from the education budget in Western Australia with concerns of further cuts in future. Parents, students and teachers are worried that cuts in education budgets will hamper the quality of education that is imparted on students. Along with that around 500 education providers are set to loose their jobs especially education assistants. Funding would be reduced in some special programs. This will increase the workload of teachers. Lack of commitment on the government’s part to explain their decision has created insecurity among the teachers, fearing further cuts in the upcoming state budget. The education assistants, public school teachers, parents and students held a strike, which resulted in the closure of 103 schools for the day. 2. The main parties in the conflict are the State School Teachers Union, parents and students along with United Voice on one side and the government on the other side. 3. The budget and job cuts have led to industrial action taken by teachers and parents. Teachers are ready to miss a day’s pay by participating in the strike; so much is their commitment to the cause. According to media reports, the Premier and the Education Minister’s refusal to attend the community day rally by terming the strike as unlawful has further agitated the teachers and parents alike. A strike would be successful if it can gather enough media attention along with public sympathy something the teachers and parents have at their...
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...2744 Government Spending & Budget As many Federal departments and agencies lurch into an era of running without funds, the leaders of both parties of Congress are spending less and less time searching for a compromise to balance the budget, and more and more time deciding how to use it to their advantage on the campaign trail. Meanwhile money is easily borrowed to pay for government overhead. In an attempt to change this, on June 29, Congress voted in favor of HConRes67 that called for a 7 year plan to balance the Federal Budget by the year 2002 (Hager 1899). This would be done by incorporating $894 billion in spending cuts by 2002, with a projected 7 year tax cut of $245 billion. If this plan were implemented, in the year 2002, the U.S. Government would have the first balanced budget since 1969. There is doubt by citizens that a balanced budget will become reality. A recent Gallop Poll from January, 1996 showed the budget as the #1 concern among taxpayers, but 4/5 of those interviewed said they doubt the GOP will do the job (Holding 14). Meanwhile, an ABC poll from November reported that over 70% of those polled disapprove of the current performance by Congress, and most blamed politicians for failure to take action (Cloud 3709). These accusations of failure to follow through come with historical proof that Congress and Clinton have failed to compromise and resolve the issue. After all, current budget plans are dependent on somewhat unrealistic predictions of avoiding such catastrophes...
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...Department of Education Week 4: Case Analysis: U.S. Budget Public Administration 581: Governmental Budgeting and Finance Introduction In 2009, Barack Obama took office as the 44th President of the United States. In February that same year, President Obama signed a stimulus bill into law that included tax cuts and a safety net of spending and appropriations for projects in our nation. When President Obama took office, he was faced with experts stating that this is the “worst U.S. economy since the Great Depression” (CNN U.S. 2009). Several documents that incorporate 2009 funding levels for the U.S. Government and the Department of Education, will attempt to identify trends for the years 2009 to 2011 in regards to outlays and receipts along with the GDP relationship. The following articles will be analyzed; The Budget Message of the President, Restoring Responsibility, Rescuing the Economy and Reviving Job Creation and Laying A New Foundation For Economic Growth. When analyzing this articles, we will look at what progress has the country made during this past year, what issues are we facing as we move forward, what is the economic situation and what significant issues and initiatives are discussed in these articles. One other piece of document that will be analyzed is the Department of Education. When we look at the Department of Education, we need to know what departments mission is, major funding items and what the budget in regards to...
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...“The most important budget in the world is that of the United States government. The U.S. budget impacts not only the United States of America but foreign investment, trade, and the economies of nations throughout the world.” (Boothe, 2003) The objective of this paper is to provide examples of how the United State’s deficits, surpluses, and debt affect individuals and business both domestically and internationally. Deficits, Surpluses and Debt; an Overview Summary measures of a budget are denoted by deficits and surpluses. Whereas a deficit is a shortfall of revenues under payments, a surplus is an excess of revenues over payments. Debt is accumulated deficits less accumulated surpluses (Colander, 2010). These summary measures indicate the health of an economy. This indicator helps both domestic and foreign companies determine if it is beneficial to invest in United States assets. Heading into the year 2000, the United States was running a surplus. This quickly changed as the government invested in The War on Terrorism, consumers changed spending habits, unemployment rose, and growth decreased. To increase the money supply, government implemented monetary policy and to get the economy moving again, implemented fiscal policies. These policies have wiped out the surpluses and created large deficits. Effects on Domestic Automotive Manufacturers In discussing the effects on an exporter such as Ford Motor Company, the deficit run by the United States would make Ford vehicles...
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...Leadership and Budgeting in a Higher Education Setting Decision-making, policy, finance and budgeting are all areas that one will encounter as a higher education administrator. There are multi-facets of leading a higher education department and managing that department’s budget. An administrator must be strategic when planning and budgeting. Understanding higher education administration requires knowing how to define the basic objectives of the department, while efficiently and effectively allocating limited resources to accomplishment departmental and institutional goals (June, 2013, par. 40). In other words, one must know the direction in which the department or institution needs to move to fulfill its mission. According to Varlotta (2010), “The responsibility-centered approach engenders a broader understanding of university budgeting since larger numbers of administrators are compelled to recognize and manage all of the costs of doing business” (p. 17). This paper discusses significance in leading, planning, decision making processes, and budgeting in higher education. Additionally, this paper presents a case study, a real world scenario that involves, strategizing due to state budget cuts. A strategic plan must act as a road map for carrying out budgetary tactics and achieving long-term results. Proficient leadership arises by defining how members can support the overall strategy of a budget; therefore, in order to boost directorial and financial performance, faculty...
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