Determine your purpose for attending college

When I left the Military for college in 1996, deciding to go to community college was a "no-brainer." Smaller class sizes, instructors focused on teaching and not research, and significantly lower cost all contributed my decision. Simply making it through with good grades and the least amount of debt were my two primary goals for my first two years of college. In saying this, I do realize that you may have a different expected outcome for your first two years of college. For example, my wife Joeli attend 4 years at Colorado State where she made relationships that will last a lifetime while participating as a Gamma Phi Beta. Greek life and socialization were key factors to her declaring success after her first two years of college, and there is nothing wrong with that, so long as you are purposeful.

Recently, I read an article in the USA today about the impact of the first two years of college. It seems as though the only real benefit to attending the first two years are for socialization. The most current figures estimate a year of attendance at the University of Colorado is $25,752. The total cost of attendance at a local community college is $16,799, creating a net savings of about $18,000 over 2 years. To put this into context, at 5 percent interest on a 10 year student loan, you are spending an additional $190 per month to attend the university.

These figures caused me to reflect on the question, "is it better to attend a community college or a university for your first 2 years of college? No one can answer this question except for you. By establishing a list of values and a purpose statements, you can assess if the benefits outweigh the cost in your specific situation. Invest the time necessary to ensure that your first two years are intentional and that you get what you hoped from your experience. If making through college with good grades and the least amount of debt are you two most important outcomes for your first two years of college, then a look at your local community college may help you to be $18,000 better off after graduating college.

Is our government broken?

I see this fundamental problem daily. I hear in the news that things are bad, but not that bad. Even more prevalent is the concern to not upset anybody. I see this in the exact opposite way.

With Congressional approval hovering around 20 percent, and presidential approval in the low 40's, I ask "why should we keep things the same in government. I have been a constant advocate of term limits, especially for any Congress with such poor approval ratings. It seems to me that if the Presidential or Congressional approval ratings fall below 30 percent, a total recall should occur and now members be voted in to office. Am I way off the mark? Please tell me what you think.

How to deal with political correctness

As adults in the 21st century it is almost second nature for most folks to be politically correct. Unfortunately, political correctness comes at a cost. It comes at the cost of truth, integrity, and repose.

As Ralph Wldo Emerson once said "Every mind must make its choice between truth and repose. It cannot have both."


The next time you have an opportunity to take a position or be "politically correct," please think about the cost of repose.


Read more about Rob at http://www.brilladvisorygroup.com/

A funadamental problem with public education

With the development of the accountability movement in public education, politicians have been concerned about alternative to traditional public education. This has taken many forms over the past decade; most importantly with the movement to vouchers and charter schools.

Unfortunately, neither has been the answer. So why do school board candidates continue to run on this platform and why do voters continue to believe this rhetoric? It has been well established that, charter schools for the most part have not been a successful alternative to public education.

Charter schools typically run with less discretionary income because of the need to pay for their facilities, while public schools fund their physical structures with debt instruments. This results in an overall lower ability to attract and retain the best talent. We all know that high quality teachers and leaders are a necessity to creating outstanding schools. This is essentially where most charter schools fall short.

Vouchers, although good in theory, have been around in various forms for many years. Although they have shown to be favored by conservatives, they have yet to be embraced on a large scale.

There is no question in my mind that the current system is in dire need of reform. What other options do you see to charter schools and vouchers?