Answer: In 2020, 89% of adults with a college degree felt ok financially while 67% of adults with a high school degree felt ok with their financial situation. 

Questions:

• What do you think it means to be "ok financially?"
• Why do you think there was such a difference in how people felt about their financial condition based on their education?
• Do you think the importance of education will increase or decrease based in the future? Explain your answer.

Click here for the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the numbers (Federal Reserve chart and Marketplace article): 

“What you have is a bit more stability at the upper end — B.A. and above — and a lot more instability below,” said Mike Horrigan, president of the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. He said about three-quarters of the job losses during the pandemic, as in retail and tourism, occurred among people who lack bachelor’s degrees.

Inequities had already grown over recent decades, said Anthony Carnevale at Georgetown’s Center on Education and the Workforce. “The harsh reality now is that you got to have at least some college to get a decent job.”

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.