LV ranks low in adults with degrees

Dan Kulin

Tuesday, May 11, 2004 | 11:18 a.m.

When it comes to population growth, hotels and convention centers, Las Vegas crushes most of its U.S. competition.

But the picture's not as pretty when it comes to ranking the percentage of adults with a college degree.

Nevada and Las Vegas were near the bottom of national rankings of states and cities comparing the percentage of adults 25 and older with a college degree in 2002, according to figures released Monday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Only Mississippi and West Virginia had a lower percentage of college educated adults than Nevada's 18.6 percent. Las Vegas ranked 58th out of 69 cities listed with 18.7 percent of Las Vegans 25 and older having a college degree. The national average was 25.9 percent.

Officials said the rankings were an unhappy, though not surprising, reminder of Nevadans' lack of higher education, which state leaders hope will change in the future with the help of the Millennium Scholarship program and the growth of nongaming business in the state.

But the ranking doesn't tell the whole story of how Nevadans are faring, UNLV economics professor Keith Schwer, who also is director of the university's Center for Business and Economic Research, said.

"Education levels demanded by the work we do here is less great than in other areas, so I would expect us to be below average," he said. "But when you look at incomes generated we're not at the bottom."

"If you're in construction you don't want some pointy-headed academic. ... And you don't need a Ph.D. to make beds," Schwer. "There are two sides to that story and people often only take the negative side without taking into account the incomes."

According to Census Bureau figures, Nevada ranked 18th out of 51 -- the 50 states plus Washington, D.C. -- in median household income in 2002 with $43,928.

Meanwhile, Mississippi and West Virginia, 50th and 51st respectively in the education ranking, were also in the same spots in the national ranking of median income in 2002. Mississippians' median income was $31,690, and West Virginians' median income was $30,982, Census Bureau figures said.

The percentage of residents 25 and older with a college degree was 17.7 percent in Mississippi, and 16.1 percent in West Virginia.

Washington, D.C., topped the rankings with 42.5 percent of its residents 25 and older having a college degree, followed by Massachusetts and Colorado.

In a ranking of 69 U.S. cities the top city was Seattle, where 48.8 percent of residents 25 and older had college degrees. The bottom city was Newark, N.J., with 7.7 percent.

Jim Rogers, interim chancellor of the state university and community college system, said he thought the percentage of Nevadans with college degrees was even lower, because "when you're so involved with the service industry it pulls your percentage down."

"But I'm not pleased with them," he said about the percentage figure and ranking. "And I think we've got the capacity to change all that."

As the state's professional schools grow and improve, and more nongaming industries move to Nevada, the education level of residents will also go up, Rogers said.

Census figures released in March also placed Nevada near the bottom in terms of residents with graduate or professional degrees. Nevadans were less likely to have those advanced degrees than residents of any other state except Mississippi.

Rogers said that the census figures don't count the large number of people who get an associate's degree from community college, who are receiving higher education although not a bachelor's degree. He said the Community College of Southern Nevada is the fourth largest community college in the nation with 33,000 students, about 8,000 more than UNLV.

Gov. Kenny Guinn spokesman Greg Bortolin said education is a top priority of his administration.

"He's a former superintendent in Clark County and he credits his place in life to the education he's had," Bortolin said.

"The Millennium Scholarship program is intended to get more of our students into college and to graduate," he said about the program that offers qualified students $2,500 a year to attend college. Currently, more than 13,000 students are enrolled in the program, which began in 2000.

Bortolin said it is important that Nevada increase the education level of its residents to make the state more attractive to different companies and give residents more options for employment.

The survey results came from the Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey, and have a margin of error of about 5 percent, a bureau spokesman said.