Going the distance

Idaho’s postsecondary completion numbers are rising, but the Gem State has made little progress toward a longtime educational goal.

In 2010, the state Board of Education announced its 60 percent goal, an effort to get 60 percent of the state’s 25- to 34-year-olds to complete some postsecondary program, a college degree or a professional certificate.

At the time, Idaho was at 37 percent.

The numbers have barely budged since.

Idaho’s 2017 postsecondary completion rate — the percentage of adults who hold a college degree or professional certificate — is 40.7 percent, according to a study from The Lumina Foundation, which tracks education trends. That’s a small uptick from 40.6 percent in 2016.

The Lumina Foundation tracks a broader demographic than the state of Idaho: 25- to 64-year-olds, compared to Idaho’s 60-percent goal, which focuses on 25- to 34-year-olds.

Even so, Idaho lags behind other states. Only Alabama, Nevada and West Virginia had lowered postsecondary completion rates.

Other findings from the Lumina Foundation’s study include:

- 18.8 percent of Idaho residents ages 25-64 hold a bachelor’s degree

- 10.6 percent hold an associate degree

- 8.3 percent hold a graduate or professional degree

- 3 percent hold a technical certificate

Kootenai County’s attainment rate — the percent of people ages 25-64 with at least an associate degree — was 35.9 percent in 2017, compared to the statewide attainment rate of 41 percent.

Latah County ranked first with an attainment rate of 57.3 percent, while Lincoln County came in last at 16.9 percent.

“Any form of postsecondary education is essential to success,” said Evan Moore, the founder of Real Frequency, a Spokane-based consulting firm that helps students transition from high school to postsecondary education.

A 2018 study by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center focuses on students who entered college in the fall of 2011, tracking their graduation rates over six years.

Only 50.7 percent of Idaho students entering a four-year public institution left with a degree. That number was just 33.65 percent for students entering two-year schools.

Moore said there are many reasons why young adults don’t complete their college educations — and in his experience, after working with dual-credit students and their families at North Idaho College, tuition often isn’t the biggest hurdle. For many students, he said, the issues that stop them from completing their education start before they finish high school.

Challenges such as anxiety and depression, drug and alcohol abuse, poor study habits and time management issues can all cause students to drop out of college.

“We’re not focusing, as a society, on those really key tenants that these students are harboring when they leave high school,” Moore said. “That’s the biggest tragedy.”

He said it’s essential that students correct and overcome these issues before moving on to postsecondary education so they have the best chance of success. That journey begins at home.

“Many parents don’t get that,” Moore said. “They’re pushing their students into this with issues that might derail them along the way.”

Moore recommends that high school students take advantage of dual-credit opportunities whenever possible. Dual-credit classes give students a head start on their required courses and help prepare them for a college workload.

Completing some form of postsecondary education is critical to the success of students and the communities they live in, Moore said — and long-term support for students the foundation on which that success is built.

“The way to get there is through postsecondary education, whether it’s a one-year technical certificate, or a two-year associate degree, or a four-year bachelor’s,” he said. “That is the tool.”