In conclusion
While high school graduates in the Inland Empire have a higher graduation rate than their California counterparts, their college enrollment rates are below average.
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Compared to their counterparts in other regions of California, students in the Inland Empire graduate at somewhat greater rates. Why, therefore, do they take longer to enroll in and graduate from college?
Why children in the Inland Empire lag behind and what teachers can do to help more students get on the college track were examined in a research published by the Public Policy Institute of California.
In an online forum for the report, Catalina Cifuentes, executive director for college and career readiness with the Riverside County Office of Education, stated that although our county has the highest (high school) graduation rates, you have the lowest college-educated. Our pupils are therefore quite competent, but it’s the link between knowledge and application.
According to the report, 88% of high school students in the Inland Empire graduate, while 86% of students statewide do the same. After then, however, the numbers turn around.
It begins with the A-G requirements, or curriculum required to enroll in a Cal State or University of California institution. Some school districts mandate additional classes in disciplines like algebra or foreign languages to ensure that all graduates are prepared for college, while others only demand the state minimum for high school graduation.
48% of students in Riverside and San Bernardino County finish the A-G standards. Sixty percent of high school graduates in the state meet those requirements.
Students must catch up before enrolling in a public institution if they haven’t completed such courses. Because of this, just 57% of Inland Empire grads enroll in college, compared to 65% of high school graduates in the state.
Community colleges are where the majority of students in the Inland Empire begin their higher education. However, compared to 40% statewide, only 31% of those students transfer to a four-year institution within six years.
As a result, fewer people graduate from college. In comparison to 41% of Californians in the same age range, 25% of Inland Empire inhabitants between the ages of 25 and 54 have a bachelor’s degree.
One factor contributing to such disparity is the local economy. According to the research, wages in the Inland Empire are over 40% less than the state average. However, important industries in the area pay more than the minimum wage for those without college degrees, which draws recent high school graduates to positions with good compensation but no room for advancement.
The transportation, logistics, and healthcare sectors have contributed significantly to job growth in the Inland Empire over the last ten years, yet the majority of their employees lack or require a college degree, according to Kevin Cook, a policy researcher at the Public Policy Institute of California.
According to university officials who spoke to CalMatters, those positions grew popular during the pandemic, when many students graduated without any guidance.
“The trade-off between educational investment and returns isn’t always clear to students and their families,” he said, adding that professional positions still pay more than those.
According to Cook, students and their families may find it discouraging that there aren’t always clear paths from college to a career, that attending college is expensive, and that even though a college degree is much more expensive than a high school diploma, it may take years for results to materialize.
Speakers said that the region is vast, with 4.6 million residents and a land area larger than most states.
According to Cook, creating a unified set of policies to enhance college outcomes is challenging due to the region’s size, scope, and distinct people and customs.
According to Cifuentes, some parents now appear antagonistic, whereas in the past they were dubious about the necessity of a college degree. “You just want to get my child into loan debt,” her parents tell her. All you want is for them to be socialist.
She claimed that they are analyzing fragments of information and drawing conclusions about higher education that are unrelated to learning, life quality, or landing a well-paying job with health insurance.
In response, she stated that parents require more precise information and that the decision to enroll in and be admitted to college must truly be made by the family.
According to the paper, schools can increase college enrollment in a number of ways.
Early college preparedness is crucial, according to experts. CalMatters covered UC Riverside’s Middle School Initiative, which brings seventh students to campus.
According to speakers, pupils will graduate from high school prepared for college if graduation criteria are in line with California’s A-G standards. That could simply include an additional year of foreign language study or one more math subject.
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By giving high school students the opportunity to enroll in some community college courses while still fulfilling their graduation requirements, dual enrollment can also make a difference.
Additionally, according to Cifuentes, encouraging kids to finish their financial assistance and college registration forms during the school day rather than providing optional after-hours appointments will encourage more students to apply for college.
“When the students are with us, we can control it,” she remarked. We are already witnessing instant benefits from it. So far, we have more than 23,000 more students committed to CSU than we had previously. However, we completed all of that during the school day.
Imperial County wishes to stop the construction of solar farms.
As the state pushes to create solar farms, farmers in Imperial County are trying to keep their property in production, according to Dan Walters of CalMatters.
Earlier this month, the Imperial Irrigation District demanded that the conversion of agricultural fields into solar panel farms be stopped. The water district requested that the Imperial County Board of Supervisors preserve rich farmland, as over 13,000 acres of fertile land had already been converted.
The battle serves as an example of how, between 1984 and 2018, the state’s agricultural land area decreased by about 1.6 million acres. In order to comply with state requirements for alternative energy sources, a portion of that area has been converted to solar farms.
According to the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the state’s approximately $60 billion agricultural industry provides more than three-quarters of the nation’s fruits and nuts and one-third of its vegetables.
Fear is stoked by false ICE reports.
According to the Press Enterprise, false claims of immigration action are generating confusion as ICE crackdowns disrupt the Inland Empire and other sections of California.
A white law enforcement van at a Riverside McDonald’s and cops in an SUV at a tire store in the Jurupa Valley are just two examples of the possible ICE raids that community groups have posted warnings about. However, in such instances, they made a mistake.
Many alerts are well-meaning but untrue, and there is frequently confusion between immigration action and other law enforcement activities. Others are nefarious efforts to attract attention or intimidate people, according to a Mexican American political group. People may be prevented from going to work, school, or other everyday activities as a result.
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