Is the American Bachelor’s Degree Losing Its Luster?

Is the sheen wearing off the American liberal arts degree? Plummeting enrollment at colleges and universities, and the increasing number of both government and private sector employers abandoning their college-degree requirements for new hires, suggest that it might be.

According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, undergraduate enrollment fell in the fall of 2022, albeit more slowly than in recent years.

Enrollment for the fall term dropped by 1.1 percent, bringing the total two-year decline since 2020 to 4.2 percent. Although there was a significant decline in 18- to 20-year-olds enrolled, much of this decline was driven by older and part-time students.

A former press secretary for the Department of Education during the Trump administration, Angela Morabito, speculates that this decline and the ensuing abandonment of degree requirements is due to the colleges themselves.

“Colleges are making themselves irrelevant,” Ms. Morabito said in a tweet. “I talk to people ALL the time who needed a college education to *get* their job but not to actually *do* their job.”

As college enrollment and the number of new graduates decline, states are now beginning to do away with college degree requirements for many jobs.

Pennsylvania has become the latest state to do so, with Governor Shapiro signing an executive order Wednesday that does away with the four-year degree requirements for 92 percent of state jobs.

“I want to make it clear to all Pennsylvanians, whether they went to college or they gained experience through work, job training, or an apprenticeship program: we value your skills and talents, and we want you to apply for a job with the Commonwealth,” Mr. Shapiro said in a speech Wednesday.

Pennsylvania, under the leadership of Mr. Shapiro, a Democrat, joins Utah and Maryland in dropping the requirement for a four-year degree for most government jobs.

In December, Governor Cox of Utah, a Republican, announced that the state would be dropping a college degree requirement for 98 percent of the jobs in the state’s executive branch.

“Degrees have become a blanketed barrier-to-entry in too many jobs,” Mr. Cox said. “Instead of focusing on demonstrated competence, the focus too often has been on a piece of paper. We are changing that.”

Maryland was the state that started the trend, with Governor Hogan’s “no skilled worker left behind” program. The program drops degree requirements for job seekers 25 and older who have a high school diploma or equivalent and are able to show they have gained skills through alternative routes.

These “Skilled Through Alternative Routes” job seekers might use community college education, apprenticeship, military service, skill bootcamps, and on-the-job training to waive the degree requirement.

These programs have also garnered support from the White House, with President Biden last spring calling on employers to focus on the skills of job applicants instead of their degrees.

With a tight labor market, companies including Google, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Bank of America, and General Motors have dropped degree requirements for certain roles in an effort to gain an advantage in attracting talent.

A recent study by a employment analytics firm, Remote, has also recently found that the salaries in comparable roles are relatively unaffected by an employee’s degree or lack thereof.

Remote’s CEO, Job van der Voort, says that companies should focus more on a potential employee’s “experiences, teachability, adaptability, and resilience.”

“Rather than using a candidate’s level of formal education as the sole indicator of how they will perform in a position, we instead suggest removing degree requirements wherever possible,” Mr. van der Voort said.

https://www.nysun.com/article/is-the-american-bachelors-degree-losing-its-luster ?

***********************************************

Parents line up to slam woke Michigan school board member for saying 'whiteness is evil' and that white people are more dangerous than WILD ANIMALS

Parents demanded a Michigan school board member be fired on Tuesday after she tweeted 'whiteness is evil' and insisted Caucasian people are more dangerous than wild animals.

Kesha Hamilton has written a series of inflammatory posts on Twitter claiming whiteness was 'synonymous with racism' and urging people to 'be safe' around 'white folks'.

Hamilton, whose ex-husband is white, faced parents and teachers in a tense board meeting for Jackson Public Schools which required extra security due to protests staged at the school by a far-right group.

One mom insisted her 'racist comments should not be condoned'.

On December 18 she wrote on Twitter: 'Whiteness is so evil, it manipulates then says I won't apologize for my dishonesty and trauma inducing practices and thinks you should applaud it for being honest about its ability to manipulate and be dishonest.'

In a separate post on December 3 she said: 'The last thing you have to worry about is an animal - though that could be a very real threat... more dangerous are any white folks you may see on the trail... be safe!'

The mother-of-six doubled down on her statements which she has not deleted from her public profile.

She told the meeting this week: 'We have to ask ourselves what are we angered over - the fact that it was said or the fact that it is true?'

She added: 'We must educate ourselves [about] how these racial disparities are impacting us and our neighbors and not let them be successful in silencing us.'

She continues to work as a board member for Jackson Public Schools which represents several schools across Jackson, Michigan.

Hamilton was elected in 2020 though her term expires at the end of 2026. It is unclear how much she is paid for the role.

One parent told Tuesday's meeting that Hamilton was 'an angry and bitter judge'.

Mom Gina Hastings added: ' Someone in her influential position must be held to a high standard. She must be a representative for all students in the JPS system.

'Her racist comments should not be condoned. How can all kids feel safe when physical characteristics over which they have no control are being called evil and dangerous.'

After the meeting, Hamilton insisted it had been a success, writing on Facebook: 'Thank you Jackson! I can’t express enough how much each of you and your presence on Tuesday night meant personally to me.

'Those in person and those online.'

She added: 'I felt your support deeply in my spirit and what was also very clear was your recognition of the Real Issue. Our students. Our teachers. Our data. The continuation of a racial equity focus. And the embracing of diverse leadership.'

Hamilton, who has also endorsed anti-police sentiments on social media, runs her own consultancy firm Diverse Minds Consulting, LLC, which claims to 'fill the gaps that exist in the messaging and training of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and anti-racism'.

She claims in her biography on its website that she was inspired by her experiences of being married to a white man and having mixed-race children.

In 2020 she ran a campaign to become a board member of Jackson Public Schools which she successfully won.

At the time, she said three of her children attended schools under the board's remit.

Last year, Hamilton became involved in a dispute with superintendent Jeff Beal who she accused of harassment and bullying.

However an independent investigation found there was not enough evidence to substantiate the claims.

Hamilton's recent posts have attracted widespread outrage, prompting local far-right group Proud Boys to hand out flyers in the school which said 'Jackson School Board hates White people.'

The board was forced to move Tuesday's meeting after being warned of the possible attendance of 'outside agitator groups' by Jackson Police and Fire Services.

Prior to the meeting, Superintendent Jeff Beal told local site MLive: ' I received attention from several concerned citizens within the last month who are frustrated with the racial tones or undertones of trustee Kesha Hamilton’s social media.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11658175/Hyperwoke-Michigan-school-board-member-slammed-saying-whiteness-evil.html

*********************************************************

Washington Township School District removes rainbow ‘safe space’ signs after parents complain

A New Jersey school district removed rainbow-colored “Safe Zone” signs hanging outside classrooms at its middle school after parents deemed them non-inclusive.

Washington Township Superintendent Peter Turnamian announced the measure at its board of education meeting on Jan. 3, according to NJ.com.

The square signs, which hung at Long Valley Middle School, resembled the rainbow-striped Pride flag, known to represent the LGBTQ+ community.

They were displayed to illustrate that the rooms were designated safe spaces for its LBTQ+ student body.

However, parents expressed concern over the fact that other groups were not represented, violating the school’s inclusion policies, The Epoch Times reported.

The signs, which were erected in 2019, will be swapped out for ones depicting the school’s panther mascot in an effort to promote respect for all.

“Ultimately, the advice of legal counsel was to have them come down,” Turnamian said at the meeting, adding that the district received “appropriate criticism” about showing favoritism.

Recently elected school board member John Holly addressed the board in January about its lack of inclusion, saying, “School should be a safe space for all kids, not just some kids.”

In December, a lesbian and gender-queer student at the school expressed her concern to the board.

“I can say the LGBTQ+ community is constantly bullied and belittled in our school system,” said a student named Rose. “The safe zone rainbow stickers let kids like me know that they are not alone despite their differences.

Christian Fuscarino, the executive director of Garden State Equality, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group in New Jersey, told the outlet that the removal of the signage, “sends a message to LGBTQ youth that they are not fully welcomed in the school environment.”

https://nypost.com/2023/01/21/new-jersey-school-district-removes-rainbow-signs-after-parents-complain/

***********************************

My other blogs: Main ones below

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com/ (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs

*******************************