Marching Bands And Mascots Join Higher Education Day In Alabama
Today is "Higher Education Day" at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery. This is the annual trip to the state capital to lobby the legislature for better funding for Alabama's colleges and universities.
According to the Higher Education partnership, some 1,000 students, faculty, advocates, mascots and marching band members from all 14 of Alabama’s public universities will parade through downtown Montgomery. Then, student leaders will sign a pledge supporting public funding for high education, just before a lunch on the lawn of the State Capitol. Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth and several other leaders in the legislature will speak at that lunch.
In an Op Ed piece, Partnership Executive Director Gordon Stone emphasized higher education turns dreams into reality, "Today, students are making decisions about their educational future that will shape their dreams and Alabama's public universities stand ready to help them."
Stone added, "A recent study from Georgetown University shows that the jobs of tomorrow will require advanced education. They project that by 2031, 42 percent of jobs in the United States will require a bachelor’s degree or higher. Further, this data shows the income potential will continue to expand as educational achievement grows. On average, individuals with a bachelor’s degree make $1 million more over the course of their life than their peers with lower levels of educational attainment."
Student representatives will have opportunities to speak one-on-one with legislators during a luncheon which will be addressed by Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth and several other leaders.
It’s estimated Alabama’s colleges and universities have a $20 billion economic impact on the state.
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