To states: invest in education and get rich

"Every additional dollar that the state invests in getting a cohort of 18-year-olds in and through college, it will gain an additional net return on that investment of $3 - an amount that, over the lifetime of a cohort of 18-year-olds, will translate to a windfall of $3 billion to the state in additional net tax revenue." UC Berkeley Survey Research Center (SRC) further believes these gains are large enough "to substantially improve the economic viability of the state (Ca)."

The SRC study which documents the financial benefits to California from increased higher education support also reports the opposite is true, namely, that if state officials do not act to increase the number of students getting through four-year universities, "any short term savings will soon turn into long-term costs."

...we expect that high school graduation rates and college going rates will increase, and demands on state support for education will climb commensurately. California will have to invest in community colleges and universities in the short run, but both the state and its residents will benefit handsomely from this additional support in the long run.

According to the press release in UC Berkeley News, "The report is an independent assessment of the costs and benefits of investing in education reviewed by more than a dozen academics and policy analysts."

Return on Investment: Education Choices and Demographic Change in California's Future
(available in PDF, 2.2 MB, available from UC Berkeley Survey Research Center)