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Dear Governor Kate Brown,

Today there is a large amount of pressure put on high schoolers to continue their

education after graduation and attend college. The idea of receiving a higher education in order

to place oneself in a stable career is one that appeals to many Americans. Many high schools

have a college resource center where students can get help with keeping track of their course

requirements, choosing schools that best suit the student, and applying for college. However,

what happens when students dont have this resource? The entire college application process is

overwhelming and confusing, making it extremely difficult for these students to continue into

post-secondary education.

Where will these students go after high school? Going straight into the workforce is an

option many choose, as well as enlisting in the military. Unfortunately, without an emphasis on

college many students may not see any point in finishing high school, leading them to drop out.

College resources in high schools are beneficial to students because they help and encourage

students to continue their education, thus furthering the chances of upward mobility.

Oregon is a state that could benefit from accessibility to college resource centers in high

schools. According to the All Hands Raised Partnership 70% of jobs in Oregon will require some

type of post-secondary education by the year 2020. However, figures show that almost 40% of

Oregon high school graduates did not continue onto college in 2011 (Hammond, 2013). If this

trend continues, this means that these graduates will not be able to the obtain the majority of jobs

on the market in Oregon. Oregon also had the second lowest public school graduation rate, 68.7

percent, in the nation in 2013 (High School Graduation Rates, 2013). College readiness in

Oregon is limited. According to the American College Testing organization, or ACT, 90% of

Oregon high school students students took the ACT test in 2014. Yet, only 67% of those test
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takers met college readiness benchmarks in English, 49% in Reading, and 47% in Mathematics

(The Condition of College & Career Readiness, 2014). Post-secondary enrollment in Oregon was

66.4% in 2010 (All Hands Raised). Consequently, these students who are pressured into

attending college are not ready and are set up for failure, shown by the majority of Oregon public

colleges having retention rates of only 50% (Oregon Public Colleges). Oregon high school

students are not ready to continue into post-secondary education and need guidance.

With the implementation of college resource centers, Oregon high schoolers will have the

resources to start their post-secondary education and find a career. This is exemplified by

comparing two Oregon high schools: Lake Oswego Senior High School and Springfield High

School. According to US News college readiness index, Lake Oswego Senior High School

scores a 51.4 out of 100. They have a graduation rate of 93% and have an average ACT score of

29 out of 36. The school also has an entire section of their school website dedicated to college

resources offered at school and online. Adversely, Springfield High school scores a dismal 6.4

out of 100 on US News college readiness index, have a graduation rate of 69%, and score an

average of 24 out of 36 on the ACT. They do not have anything on their website dedicated to

college resources. This might be an indicator of how much Springfield High School values

higher learning for their students. This can also show how high schools without college resource

centers affect the potential upward mobility of their students.

High schools, especially those with students of color as the majority or the student body

population, can benefit from college resource centers and project their students into upward

mobility. Anilene Arevalo Torralba, a freshman at Portland State University, attended high school

at the Academy of International Studies at Woodburn in Woodburn, Oregon, where the student

body is primarily Latino. In an interview with Torralba, she speaks highly of the outreach her
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high school gave her in order to continue her education. She details, There was emphasis on

attending college and we had resources like the college and career center to help guide us on a

path to college. Our school was offered the ACT for free, as well as ACT preparation and college

trips. Most of the students attend a community college or university after high school, (Arevalo

Torralba, 2016). The Academy of International Studies at Woodburn has a graduation rate of

90% (US News). It is apparent that when provided with the correct resources, high school

students can achieve higher education and get on a suitable career path.

Along with any disparity, practical and actionable solutions are possible. One solution to

this problem would be to allocate state funding for dropout prevention and college readiness.

This would mean distributing 900 dollars additionally to the 9,543 dollars per high school

student in Oregon in order to expand career education programs, college-level educational

opportunities, and dropout prevention strategies. This would bring up funds per student closer to

the national average of 10,700 dollars per student. Another solution would be to reassess where

funding is going in each school and redistribute the funding of college and career resources

accordingly. By moving money not utilized and placing it in the areas that are lacking can

provide a plan for improvement of facilities without spending additional money. Lastly, and

probably the most painless, would be for high schools to emphasize the opportunities college

creates for their students. Each school could designate a section of their website to college and

career resources for students. This section could provide links to outside resources that can guide

students in the right direction towards higher education. This policy would execute a much

smaller budget as opposed to hiring a staff member specialized in college and career counseling

for each school. Policies can be effective while still being politically savvy. All of these policies

are possible if it means that Oregons youth can achieve higher education and upward mobility.
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Thank you,

Sara Lioanag

Portland State University

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References

The All Hands Raised Partnership. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2016, from

http://allhandsraised.org/chapter02-data/the-all-hands-raised-partnership.html

Arevalo Torralba, A. (2016, October 24). Oregon High Schooler Perspective [Personal

interview].

The Condition of College & Career Readiness 2014: Oregon. (2014). Retrieved October 29,

2016, from https://www.act.org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/CCCR-2014-

Oregon.pdf

High School Graduation Rates by State. (2013). Retrieved October 29, 2016, from

http://www.governing.com/gov-data/high-school-graduation-rates-by-state.html

Oregon Public Colleges. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2016, from http://collegemeasures.org/4-

year_colleges/state/or/compare-colleges/graduation-rates/

Oregonian/OregonLive, B. H. (2013, January 08). Nearly 40 percent of Oregon high school grads

don't go to college. Retrieved October 29, 2016, from

http://www.oregonlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/06/nearly_40_percent_of_oregon_h

i.html

US News Best High Schools in Oregon. (n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2016, from

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/oregon