November 11, 2009
Promise recipients less likely to remain in W.Va., study finds
By Eric Eyre
Staff writer
By Davin White
Staff writer
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Promise scholarship graduates are less likely to remain in West Virginia after graduation than the average state graduate, according to a West Virginia University study released Wednesday.
About 62 percent of Promise graduates worked in West Virginia after graduation, compared with 67 percent of all in-state college graduates, researchers found.
"That suggests that the Promise scholarship isn't doing a lot for the state in terms of human capital development," said George Hammond, a WVU economist who co-authored the study as part of a report on the state's economic outlook for 2010.
The graduates of the high school class of 2002 were the first to receive the scholarship, and one of former Gov. Bob Wise's original intentions was to keep students in West Virginia once they graduated.
In early 2008, Gov. Joe Manchin wanted to make Wise's intent a requirement. Students who earned the scholarship, kept it and finished college would have to stay in West Virginia upon graduation or pay the money back. The amount of time a student would have remained in the state would have been up to the board that oversaw Promise, a former spokeswoman for Manchin said at the time. The proposal did not pass the Legislature.
Hammond said West Virginia benefits from the Promise scholarship because students stay in West Virginia and spend money in the state during their college years. Also, the scholarship may improve achievement, encouraging students to seek higher grades and standardized test scores.
The Promise Scholarship is a merit-based program that provides free tuition to state high school graduates who meet certain requirements and attend college in West Virginia. The scholarship also can be used toward tuition at private colleges in West Virginia.
In contrast to Promise scholars, students who received need-based aid under the state's Higher Education Grant Program were more likely to remain in West Virginia than average in-state graduates, according to the study. More than 70 percent of students who receive need-based aid decided to stay and work in the state after graduation.
University of Charleston President Ed Welch said he is not surprised that the number of Promise graduates who leave West Virginia would be greater than -- or about the same as -- the total number of in-state graduates.
Many of the jobs that Promise graduates pursue -- whether it's as an engineer, physician, administrator, or computer specialist -- are more likely to land graduates outside the state, Welch said.
Several of the jobs that attract people to West Virginia, such as cooks, forest conservation workers, loggers, food/beverage service workers, sales representatives and law enforcement workers, are often not pursued by college students with the Promise scholarship, he said.
Welch has been critical of the Promise scholarship's impact on West Virginia's private colleges and universities, which he says have to offer significantly more financial aid to recruit students than similar schools in other states.
Still, the study also found that Promise scholars earn less than students who receive need-based scholarships after graduation.
Promise recipients made $24,805 on average in 2008, while need-based graduates earned $31,828 in their first job, according to the study. The average in-state graduate had a salary of $34,446.
Hammond said the difference between the salaries of Promise recipients and other graduates is expected to shrink over time.
"Their wages are relatively low, in part, because their careers have just begun," said Hammond, associate director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at WVU.
The bureau plans to release a follow-up study later this year. That study will track graduates who find work in other states.
Michael Misiti is a 2006 Marshall University graduate, the former student body president and a Promise recipient. The Beckley native left West Virginia after graduating to work at an accounting firm in Columbus, Ohio, but did what he could to return home. In June, he started work at The Fyffe Jones Group in Huntington.
"That was my plan. I knew I wanted to get back," he said. "I wasn't sure when and how, but I knew I wanted to get back."
Misiti considers himself a big advocate for the Promise, but understands that some graduates need to leave the state. Some of his friends from Marshall, he said, would still like to return and find work here.
While in Columbus, Misiti did his best to become a viable candidate who could find an accounting job in West Virginia, he said.
The state Higher Education Policy Commission funded the Promise report.
In 2008, 2,301 of 3,692 Promise graduates earned wages from jobs in West Virginia.
Promise graduates earning associate degrees had the highest work participation rate at 80.6 percent.