ERIC Number: ED538625
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Nov
Pages: 8
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Inseparable Imperatives: Equity in Education and the Future of the American Economy
DeBaun, Bill
Alliance for Excellent Education
For most of the last sixty years, the United States has labored to provide a quality education to "all" children, regardless of their skin color or socioeconomic status. This struggle for equity in education has seldom been linked to America's position as the world's economic powerhouse and leading producer of college-educated individuals. Historically, the country's moral failure to provide all children with an adequate and equal education did not incur a noticeable economic cost. This is no longer the case. Today, this moral imperative--to equitably provide all students with a quality education--is now a critical factor in maintaining the United States's national economic strength. The global economy demands knowledge and skills, and America cannot afford to ignore the gaps in educational achievement and disparate high school graduation rates that keep it from producing a workforce that possesses both. Failing to close these gaps, especially given the nation's changing demographics, will have dire consequences for the American economy. With two-thirds of the U.S. economy driven by consumer spending, it is only by increasing the financial resources of large portions of the population--specifically among rapidly growing communities of color--that the national economy will reap huge benefits. Increasingly, these consumers and workers will be citizens of color as the United States experiences sweeping demographic changes. U.S. policymakers searching for a formula to rebuild the economy must include equity in their equation. This equation has only one conclusion: in an information-age economy dependent upon consumer activity, any successful economic strategy must eliminate the gaps in education attainment and achievement and enable the fastest-growing populations to reach their full potential as wage earners, consumers, and citizens. (Contains 18 endnotes.)
Descriptors: Equal Education, Educational Quality, Educational Attainment, Achievement Gap, Graduation Rate, High School Graduates, Economic Impact, Education Work Relationship, Minority Group Students, Educational Benefits, Population Growth, Public Schools, School Demography
Alliance for Excellent Education. 1201 Connecticut Avenue NW Suite 901, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-828-0828; Fax: 202-828-0821; Web site: http://www.all4ed.org
Publication Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education; High Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: State Farm Insurance Companies
Authoring Institution: Alliance for Excellent Education
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A