Ohio Economists: Scholarships Likely to Keep High Achievers In-State
Receive stories like these directly to your email. Subscribe to Newsletter.
A majority of a panel of economists in Ohio believe that the state has the potential to retain many of its most talented students if it offers scholarships to those who graduate in the top 5% of their class. This conclusion was drawn from a survey published this week.
This stance aligns the economists with Governor Mike DeWine in his disagreement with the Republican-controlled Ohio House of Representatives. Governor DeWine, who also belongs to the Republican party, allocated $18 million per year in his proposed budget to provide scholarships for top-performing students to attend Ohio universities. However, the House removed this funding from the budget that was passed earlier this month. The House, Senate, and governor must negotiate a spending plan by June 30.
As part of their regular survey of economists in Ohio, Scioto Analysis asked 17 economists if scholarships for students in the top 5% of their class to attend Ohio universities would help address brain drain. Thirteen respondents answered affirmatively, while the remaining four expressed uncertainty.
In the comments section of the survey, certain economists provided additional context to their agreement. For example, Jonathan Andreas of Bluffton University stated, "Research shows that when students attend college within a region, it leads to positive effects that stay within the region. However, I am unsure if the benefits would outweigh the costs. It might be more effective to allocate the funding towards loan forgiveness for Ohio residents who choose to stay in the state after graduation. To ensure fairness, this should be announced in advance so that it does not merely reward students who had already decided to remain in-state without any additional incentive. Ideally, the loans should be presented to incoming students as grants, which will only convert to loans if students leave the state to work within a specific period of time."
According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, there is a strong correlation between college enrollment and the number of postsecondary institutions within each state. This means that states with higher population and geographic size have more capacity to accommodate a larger student population. Ohio, with 75.6% of its students staying in-state for college, ranks in the top half of states based on this measure.
Obtaining statistics regarding where the most talented students go after college is challenging. However, in 2019, Forbes reported that due to heavy student debt and other factors, half of millennials are returning home to live with their parents after completing their college education.
Curtis Reynolds, an economist from Kent State, in the Scioto Analysis survey, suggested that financial considerations might impact the decisions of top-performing high school students. He noted that many students would choose to attend college where they are offered scholarship money.
Reynolds stated, "I am uncertain about how effective this would be in keeping high-performing students in-state for college. Out-of-state tuition fees are significantly higher, so some students will choose to stay in-state regardless. However, these are all high-performing students who may already receive scholarships. Furthermore, there is no guarantee that they would stay in Ohio after completing college."
Ohio Capital Journal is a member of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus that receive support from grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Ohio Capital Journal maintains editorial independence. For inquiries, please contact Editor David DeWitt at info@ohiocapitaljournal.com. Follow Ohio Capital Journal on Facebook and Twitter.
Subscribe to Newsletter to have stories like these delivered directly to your inbox.
