I will discuss the relationship between median household income levels and educational attainment. There is a direct correlation between the two. The more education a person obtains the higher their earnings will be. Data from the Census Bureau displays the relationship between poverty and education. The data also unravels the disturbing consequences of not attending college or trade school. I will examine the case studies of Flint and Detroit Michigan. The two cities have a predominately African American population along with a high poverty rate. Cities that are located outside of the Detroit area such as Troy, West Bloomfield, and Grosse Pointe have higher median household income levels along with higher educational attainment levels.
The city of Flint is in need of academic and youth development programs because according to the census.gov 2015 demographic data; the median household income is $24,862 per year. For young people between the ages of 18-24 years only 334 (3%) people have obtained a bachelor degree or higher out of a population of 10,977. Also 4,274 (38%) of people between the ages of 18-24 have some college or associates degree out of a population of 10,977. According to the 2015 census data; 18,635 children in grades K-12 are enrolled in school. The population of adults enrolled in college or graduate school is 71%; 7,866, for people between the ages of 18-24. Only 3,799 (34%) of people are enrolled in college out of a population of 10,977 of young people between the ages of 18-24. Figure 1 below displays the science section of the M-Step test scores for the 2015-2016 school year.
Educational attainment and economic prosperity are in fact connected. Cities that have a higher median household income than Detroit and Flint have higher educational attainment past the high school completion level. For example; according to the 2015 US census data, Troy, Michigan is a suburb located in Oakland County and is just outside of the city of Detroit. The city of Troy has a population of 57,444 people aged 25 and over, 16,946 (30%) of people have a bachelor degree, and 16,171 (28%) of people have a graduate degree. In the city of Troy; for young people aged 18-24 (22%) have a bachelor degree, only 619 (9%) of people have less than a high school diploma within this age bracket. The median household income for the city of Troy is $85,027. West Bloomfield Township is another place located in Oakland County that has a higher median household income than Detroit and Flint. According to the US census 2009 data; the number of people aged 25 and over in West Bloomfield Township is 43,910, 55.8% of people have a bachelor degree or higher within this age bracket. Only 3.1% of people aged 25 and over have less than a high school diploma. For people aged 18-24; 53.6% have some college or associates degree. The median household income for West Bloomfield Township is $98,416. It is also a known fact that young adults with bachelor or graduate degrees earned more than young adults with high school diplomas.
According to the National Center of Education Statistics; “for young adults ages 25–34 who worked full time, year round, higher educational attainment was associated with higher median earnings; this pattern was consistent from 2000 through 2014. For example, in 2014 the median earnings of young adults with a bachelor’s degree ($49,900) were 66 percent higher than the median earnings of young adults who completed high school ($30,000). The median earnings of young adults who completed high school were 20 percent higher than the median earnings of those without a high school credential ($25,000). In addition, median earnings of young adults with a master’s or higher degree were $59,100 in 2014, some 18 percent higher than the median earnings of young adults with a bachelor’s degree. This pattern of higher earnings associated with higher levels of educational attainment also held for both male and female young adults as well as for White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian young adults.”
- Bureau, U. S. (2015). Factfinder.census.gov. American Fact Finder. collegeresults.org. (2014).
- Education, M. D., & 2016, M.-S. T. (2016). M-Step Test Scores . Michigan Department of Education.