The Relationship of Education to Poverty

Categories: College

Interesting article in the Atlantic: College costs continue to rise, outpacing inflation, yet the cost to them and society is astounding:

  • College graduates earn 80% more than high school graduates
  • If US raised education performance South Korea’s level US economy would improve by more than $2 trillion (same as Italy)
  • The impact of a good versus average teacher improves a student’s future lifetime earnings by $400,000
  • $100,000 spent on college at age 18 yields a greater return than the same invested in stocks or bonds
  • Social cost per youth is over $37,000 when considering lost earnings, public health spending, and other expenditures. Calculating that for all youth in the study (6.7 million) the cost is $4.75 trillion: 1/3 of GDP, or 1/2 of U.S. public debt