One million dollars.
That’s how much JFYNetWorks has saved college-bound students.
How? By helping them build the skills to meet college entry requirements. Our high school-based blended learning programs have helped thousands of students improve their skills and eliminate over 2000 remedial college courses. The savings in tuition and fees have now passed the one million dollar mark.
A million dollars. The idea has deep American resonance. No amount of inflation can dim the luster of its gold-rush gleam.
Today’s gold rush is college. A two-year degree is worth $300,000 more in lifetime earnings than a high school diploma. A four-year degree gains $800,000.
The million dollars we have saved with our college-focused blended learning turns into hundreds of millions in earnings gains. Convert that into purchasing power– homes, cars, college tuitions—and it’s more than just academic sheepskin. It’s the foundation of a prosperous and stable society. It’s the American dream.
College is not just an option anymore—it is a necessity. College graduates get hired more easily and earn much more than non-graduates. The gap has been widening for decades with the college advantage trending steadily upward. Within a few years, over 70% of jobs will require at least a two-year degree.
But our young people are not keeping up with this trend.
- Three-quarters of our high school graduates enroll in post-secondary education, but less than half graduate with a degree.
- The biggest falloff is at community colleges, where 60% of incoming high school graduates get assigned to remedial courses because of low reading and math skills.
- Remedial courses cost full tuition and fees but give no degree credit. They exhaust financial resources, consume precious time, and discourage students who have neither money nor time to waste.
- 90% of remedial students drop out of community college without a degree, chopping off their career ladder at the first rung.
We cannot afford this waste of our human resources. In our cutthroat global economy, a skilled workforce is the ultimate competitive advantage.
This is why college readiness is a crisis in America. 50% of our undergraduate population is enrolled in community college, and more than half of these students enter without sufficient academic skills for college, much less careers. This college readiness gap is the single greatest barrier to graduation and employment opportunity for American youth. It is the single greatest threat to America’s global competitiveness. This is the gap JFYNetWorks closes.
College is the ladder to the American dream. Our responsibility to our young people is to make sure they have the skills to climb that ladder. JFYNetWorks is fulfilling that responsibility by helping young people build the skills to climb into college and keep right on climbing up to jobs and careers. That’s what we mean by “college and career ready.”
Now, on to the next million.
