SC CAN aiming for more graduates

South Carolina parents' perceptions about how far their children will go educationally far exceed how the state's young people actually perform.

That's one of the findings from a survey released Monday by the state's Commission on Higher Education. The commission released the findings at a press conference about the launch of a new statewide campaign called SC CAN, which is aimed at increasing the number of South Carolinians who start and complete college degrees.

The survey, which was conducted by the commission, Winthrop University and South Carolina ETV, polled more than 800 parents of 13- to 19-year-olds who attend public schools about educational expectations and perceived opportunity for their children.

Eighty-six percent of parents polled said they expected their children to earn a bachelor's degree or higher, and 94 percent said their children expected that for themselves.

But many of the students who begin high school in the state fail to graduate, and Cynthia Mosteller, a commission board member, said only 24 percent of the state's adults who are 25 or older hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

The state needs to increase the number of adults with college degrees if it wants to improve its economy, Mosteller said. "We have to create a college-going culture," she said.

The new SC CAN campaign grew out of a report from a statewide higher education study committee, she said. That committee's main finding was that South Carolina needed to increase its college graduation rate, she said. The committee established a goal to increase to 30 percent by 2030 the percentage of the state's adults who are 25 or older and hold a bachelor's degree or higher, she said.

The new campaign will be paid for with a nearly $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education's College Access Challenge Grant Program.

The campaign will include a media component with billboards and public service announcements, she said. It also will include developing a network of parents and education and business leaders.

And for students and parents, the network has launched a Web site, sccango.com. The site, which also has sections for teachers, counselors and mentors, will eventually offer students and parents information on the process of getting into college, Mosteller said.

The network will address issues about academic achievement and preparation, she said. But many students, especially those who are low-income or among the first generation in their families to attend college, need information about the steps necessary to enroll.

Students need to know how and when to apply for college and how to apply for financial aid, she said.

The Web site will help them get started, but the campaign will launch face-to-face programs, as well, she said. For instance, in February, it will promote group sessions to complete financial aid applications.

Kenneth Wingate, chairman of the Commission on Higher Education, in a news release said, the campaign will bridge the gap between parents' and students' expectations, and what they really need to do to enroll and succeed in college. "Parents and students alike are assuming that if they dream of college, then the information they need will come to them," he said.

South Carolina students can get to college, Mosteller said. "It's not that the doors to higher education are locked, but that the doors need to be proactively opened by students."

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.