Partnership president Brent Beasley called the findings a \u201ccivic and moral crisis\u201d that has ramifications on the city\u2019s workforce and economic needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of our children in Fort Worth are not progressing their education beyond high school and many are not even making it to high school graduation,\u201d Beasley said. \u201cThe door is starting to close early for them on the opportunities that are available to them, to access the lives that they want and they serve.\u201d<\/p>\n
Data from the Tarrant To & Through Partnership, also known as T3, shows 39% of Tarrant County adults possess an associate degree or higher. However, 65% of jobs require a postsecondary certification or college degree.<\/p>\n
Not having a degree or industry credentials impacts a person\u2019s livelihood. The median bachelor\u2019s degree holder<\/a> earns $32,000 more annually than someone with only a high school diploma, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n Over a lifetime, that can mean a person earning $1 million less without a credential, according to T3.<\/p>\n Among students who did finish high school, the majority showed clear aspirations for higher education, according to the partnership report. About 58% enrolled in a Texas college or university, and another 9% went out of state.<\/p>\n Leaders across Fort Worth need to determine how they can ensure students fulfill their aspirations, said Leila Santill\u00e1n, the partnership\u2019s chief operation officer.<\/p>\n \u201cI hope we can get more kids there because it shows a strong desire and a clear value in long-term life values. I hope we don\u2019t lose sight of that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n But the gap between enrollment and completion is wide.<\/p>\n Just 14% of Fort Worth students earned a bachelor\u2019s degree and 5% an associate degree within six years of graduation.<\/p>\n That leaves most young adults in Fort Worth without a credential and with only a 12% chance of earning a living wage, the report found.<\/p>\n In Tarrant County, a single adult needs at least $48,200 a year to cover basic expenses<\/a>, and a family of four with two working parents requires more than $108,600, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology<\/a>.<\/p>\n The report framed the outcomes as both an economic challenge and a human one. Beasley hopes the findings spark conversations across multiple fronts, he said \u2014 from K-12 preparation to advising community college completion.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of different points all along the way that involve lots of different constituencies,\u201d Beasley said. \u201cI would hope this starts a conversation among all those different folks along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n Beasley and Santill\u00e1n emphasized attaining a college degree does not begin in high school \u2014 it\u2019s a process that stretches to a student\u2019s first days of elementary school.\u00a0<\/p>\n Low reading rates<\/a> beget low high school completion rates and degree attainment, they said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to do a better job of preparing our students from an early age,\u201d Beasley said. \u201cThat\u2019s a long game, but if we do that then we have a chance to see better results 10 or 15 years from now.\u201d<\/p>\n Disclosure: The Sid W. Richardson Foundation, which supports the Fort Worth Education Partnership, has been a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report.<\/p>\n News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Jacob Sanchez is education editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez<\/a>.<\/p>\n Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative<\/a> for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.<\/p>\n Republish This Story<\/p>\n
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