HELENA Mont.—President Barack Obama set a goal early in his first term for the U.S. to turn out more college graduates than any other nation, but there hasn’t been much progress as most states have stumbled in their attempts to improve.
Montana, however, stands apart.
By investing in junior colleges, the Treasure State boasts a 6 percent rise in adult graduation rates over a span where the rest of the country showed an increase of less than 1 percent, according to census data.
Montana, and the nation, still has a long way to go to accomplish the president’s objective by his 2020 deadline. It would take roughly a 50 percent increase in graduation rates to hit Obama’s target. Meanwhile, the percentage of degree-holders has decreased in 15 states since the president’s 2009 announcement, and other states have seen only marginal bumps.
Education experts say the U.S. won’t reach Obama’s mark without focusing on nontraditional students, which Montana has done through focusing on community colleges.
“We have done a lot to pull two-year schools into the limelight,” said Tyler Trevor, an official with the Montana University System.
Tuition rates at the state’s community colleges have been frozen since 2007 at about $3,000 annually, roughly half the amount of Montana’s four-year universities.
