Dropping out of college creates job uncertainty and debt. A new study by the American Institutes for Research shows dropouts also create state and individual costs.
According to the study, dropouts cost the nation more than $9 billion between 2003 and 2008. Louisiana ranks 13th in state expenditures on first-year students, costing the state $217.4 million in those five years.
University Director of External Affairs Jason Droddy said the LSU System has a low graduation rate.
Droddy said to raise the graduation rate, low performing students need to move to community colleges for a more fitting experience.
The Board of Regents will have new admission standards in 2012, which Droddy said should put students where they can succeed.
Droddy said the University was cognizant of the problem of college dropouts in the 1980s, and created admission standards then to improve graduation rates from 37 percent in 1989 to 67 percent in 2010.
“It seemed to be unfair to the students and parents to admit them to college where they probably won’t succeed,” Droddy said.
Money losses due to dropout students continue on a national level.
According to the report, the last two presidential administrations have increased funding for the Federal Pell Grant Program, and the “losses through that program are substantial.”
“[We] spend far too much money on students who don’t even finish the first lap, let alone fail to cross the finish line,” the report says.
Board of Regents spokeswoman Meg Casper said the LA GRAD Act, which gives universities the ability to raise tuition after meeting lower dropout rates, could help lower money lost on dropouts.
“[We’re] seeing a lot of programs and focus on graduating and completing, and working out the degree at hand rather than enrolling students,” Casper said.
Casper cited reasons why money is spent on students who drop out.
“If you enroll a bunch of students and they drop out, you may have hired additional faculty,” Casper said. “And any service that’s provided to students is somewhat based on enrollment.”
Casper said the Board of Regents has pushed campuses to focus more on graduation, retention and completion and rewarding the institutions monetarily for success.
The University’s continuation rate from freshman to sophomore for 2009 was 84.1 percent, a 10 percent increase in the last 20 years.
Almost 16 percent of the 2008 freshman class did not return for fall 2009.
The continuation rate also includes students who have transferred to other schools.
Casper admitted Louisiana’s percentage of adults with a college degree was low at 23 percent.
The state’s Center for Adult Learning in Louisiana helps dropouts complete their degree.
“It’s all about improving the percentage of adults in the state who have post-secondary education credentials,” Casper said.
 
—
Contact Catherine Threlkeld at [email protected]