Blueprints College Access Initiative

Alabamians can’t afford not to go to college. Every year, the gap in earnings between people with and without a college degree is widening, which correlates with the increasing gap between the rich and poor. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities reports the gap between Alabama’s richest and poorest families is the second largest in the nation. According to Measuring Up, a 2008 study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, only 35% of 18-24 year old Alabamians are enrolled in college, and only 23% of those over 25 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. Children of parents who did not attend college are less likely to enroll in college, and those that do, “first-generation students”, are less likely to graduate. The same study evaluated the affordability of higher education in Alabama. In the 40% of the population with the lowest incomes, families must commit at least 36% of their annual income to send a student to community college, even after the average financial aid package, and over 50% for a 4-year college. The Southern Education Foundation concluded that 60% of the income gap in Alabama is due to low educational attainment. The vicious cycle of poverty in the seventh poorest state in the nation will not stop, or even be deterred, without a significant increase in students attending college. Better access to higher education for all students in Alabama is a necessity.