Wayne State University to offer free tuition to Detroit high school graduates

[Johnnny5]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/does-fr...rs-11561741553

The Kalamazoo Promise has done something similar, perhaps look to this for what to expect

Similar, but 100% privately funded and acceptance is dependent on having spent a substantial amount of time living and attending schools in Kalamazoo. The problem I see with the WSU program is that it only requires Detroit residency and graduation from any high school in Michigan. Is there anything stopping someone from Traverse City or Bloomfield Hills from moving to Detroit the summer after their senior year and then claiming the funding? Not that I would be opposed to someone doing so, it's just without any income limitations it appears there's a angle from which this program could easily be manipulated.

[JonWylie]

Similar, but 100% privately funded and acceptance is dependent on having spent a substantial amount of time living and attending schools in Kalamazoo. The problem I see with the WSU program is that it only requires Detroit residency and graduation from any high school in Michigan. Is there anything stopping someone from Traverse City or Bloomfield Hills from moving to Detroit the summer after their senior year and then claiming the funding? Not that I would be opposed to someone doing so, it's just without any income limitations it appears there's a angle from which this program could easily be manipulated.

People moving to the city is the ultimate goal here so I think they kind of want and anticipate this

[EastsideAl]

Good to see Wayne harking back to its roots as the college of the City of Detroit. Back before it was a state university, both of my parents went there at very affordable rates [[my mother earned a scholarship for a couple of years too) as DPS graduates and the first people in their families to graduate from high school, let alone go to college. That opportunity changed their lives, and those of their children, as it did for thousands of working class and poor city kids back then. They both felt that WSU, in its push to become a major residential state university, had lost a lot of that value to the city and area it was built to serve.

As someone who has worked in higher education, and in academic support and tutoring, I can say that there is no such thing as an unalloyed success in higher education, particularly when dealing with kids from backgrounds of economic, social, and educational deficits. But there are also numerous successes, some of them quite stunning, when people are given a chance to learn, given a wider range of opportunities and the means to experience a wider world. Let's hope this program lasts and prospers, because it will change lives for the better.

[drjeff]

The tuition rate increases over the past 30 years are parallel between UM, MSU, and WSU, except WSU tuition remains significantly lower [[roughly $3000 less per year for in-state tuition in 2019-2020.) WSU is doing the same thing every state university has had to do since the state cut way back on funding in the 2000s. UM, MSU, and WSU are the three research universities inn Michigan. They can't really be compared with the non-research state universities. I know for a fact that WSU cut their budget to the bone in the past 10 years. There are too many administrators with big salaries currently but it's not like the place is rolling in money like UM is. UM also has 50% out of state undergraduates and charges over $60,000 per year in tuition to them [[in-state is ~$16,000.)

[Ray1936]

UM also has 50% out of state undergraduates and charges over $60,000 per year in tuition to them [[in-state is ~$16,000.)

"Ah, yes................."

[Meddle]

I'm more interested in a fundamental change in hiring policies. In my day, you were hired on your perceived ability to do the job, not whether or not you had a piece of paper. Employers trained people within and promoted accordingly. They invested in employees, not warm bodies.

Most jobs should not require degrees unless there are specific skills involved that require certification like medical or engineering. Even then, internships would be better options. Hire, train the basics, then sponsor the education.

Schools have become businesses seeking more students rather than service institutes. Requiring degrees for menial jobs is only feeding the machine. That is fueled by alumni getting into hiring positions and their drive to push enrollment in their former schools.

When I worked at the Federal Court downtown, one of the managers demanded a two year degree for Intake Clerks who did little more than filing and fee collection. There was no Federal requirement at the time and no rational reason for it.

[Johnnny5]

Can't rememebr where, but I was reading the other day that this entire free tuition pledge was supposedly made and announced without consulting WSU's board of governors. I know there has been some jockeying for power between the President and the board, but it seems a bit ridiculous that a program like this would or could be implemented without the board weighing in on it.

[oladub]

Reasons for higher education costs increasing more than inflation include:
-States have reduced the percentage of total tuition costs they pay.
-Wages have flat-lined while educational costs have increases.
-Colleges and universities offer more student services.
-To the extent that universities provide scholarships, tuition rates for other students have to be increased.
-Some STEM courses require expensive and rapidly outdated equipment.
-Available loans and aid increase demand for enrollment.
-As Meddle pointed out, job markets often require degrees for jobs that don't require a degree.

Because Wayne State is a commuter school, total costs are less than if dorms were required.

[Johnnny5]

Things are getting a bit weird at WSU.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2019/11/05/wayne-state-president-roy-wilson-fired/4168245002/

[drjeff]

There's been an ongoing feud between two factions of the board of governors. This is just the latest power grab from one of the factions.

I've been at WSU through 4 presidents. While Wilson has some issues [[I dislike the use of so many outside consultants, for one) He's been by far the most effective president. The university is in a lot better shape than it was 15 years ago. The previous president [[Gilmour) was a total disaster.