An educational silver lining

It’s not a good thing that many Tennesseans — like many Americans in general — cannot find the jobs they need in the current recession.

Neither is it a good thing that proportionately fewer Tennesseans have college degrees than residents of many other states have. While not everyone needs a college degree to achieve professional success in life, it is generally understood that advanced technology and competition from an educated work force in other countries mean more Americans will need a college education.

But there may at least be an educational “silver lining” to the bad economic situation: With job prospects fairly dim right now, more people in the Chattanooga area are pursuing valuable additional education.

Both UTC and Chattanooga State expect to break their enrollment records this fall, as many people consider new careers and a high percentage of high school graduates head to college. UTC may see an enrollment jump of 3 percent, while Chattanooga State is anticipating enrollment growth of roughly 10 percent. UTC had about 10,500 students last fall. Chattanooga State had about 9,400 students.

“Numbers are up because the economy is still down,” Jeff Olingy, a spokesman for Chattanooga State, told the Times Free Press. “People are looking for opportunities to reinvent themselves.”

Though we would obviously like to see lots more jobs available immediately, additional education will be a long-term career benefit to people who are returning to school as well as to recent high school graduates. That may not be not much comfort to those who can’t find work now, but individuals who seek extra training and education will reap rewards later.