Why Mike Rowe Wants Americans to Value Trade Schools Again
By Movieguide® Contributor
Mike Rowe blasts how expensive college has gotten, and wants Americans to see value in trade and vocational schools.
“[College is] more expensive than it’s ever been, but it’s also more expensive than health care. It’s more expensive than real estate. It’s more expensive than energy,” Rowe said. “Never in the history of Western civilization has a thing become more exponentially expansive faster than the cost of a four-year degree. That’s fact. If that doesn’t make you angry, then I don’t know what [will]. It’s bananas.”
As the cost of four-year universities continues to rise, Rowe believes that college is no longer worth the price.
According to a report from Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, the cost of college and university programs have surged 169% since 1980. Meanwhile, the cost of vocational schools and trade programs have remained a fraction of the cost, despite both routes leading to jobs with comparable salaries.
“We’ve told an entire generation that the best path for most people is the most expensive path,” Rowe said. “And we’ve also promoted college not on its merits, but at the expense of every other kind of degree of any kind of certification training.”
To support young people pursuing career paths outside of a college degree, Rowe founded the mikeroweWORKS Foundation. This foundation awarded $1 million in work ethic scholarships during the month of March alone.
“My foundation focuses on the millions of jobs that are available that don’t require a four-year degree. We offer a couple million bucks a year in work ethic scholarships. We’re doing it right now,” Rowe said.
Rowe believes that the labor shortages that have been ravaging the country over the past year or two was caused by the push to have everybody go to college. After receiving a degree, many people view themselves as above blue-collar jobs.
While Rowe believes that not everyone should attend a four-year university, he is quick to point out that he is not anti-education.
“I know it’s going to come back over the net at me when I say that, it’s going to be, ‘Oh, he’s anti-college, he’s anti-education.’ I’m not. I’m simply saying that after decades of telling generations of kids, the best path for the most people is the most expensive path, we’ve created this problem that we have right now. I think the ship is starting to turn.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Rowe:
In a recent Facebook post, Mike Rowe celebrated the amount of opportunity available to all Americans after visiting the National Auto Glass Week convention in San Antonio.
“I know I say this a lot, and at the risk of beating a horse long since expired, I can’t leave an event like this and not say it again – the amount of opportunity in this country is truly shocking,” Rowe shared.
However, the DIRTY JOBS alum recognizes Americans’ decreasing interest in blue-collar jobs and work generally. As Movieguide® previously reported, “Much of the struggling work force is due to decades of educators, parents and society pushing students to pursue college after high school instead of apprenticeships or trades, creating a void in these much-needed industries.”
Rowe adds, “Millions of able-bodied people are choosing not to work, and eleven and a half million positions remain open – most of which don’t require a four-year degree.”
“The official unemployment rate may be low, but so too is the overall labor participation rate,” he continues.
While many are choosing not to work, the 11.5 million open positions in the United States represent the opportunity created by this country and available to those who want to take it.
Many of these positions exist in industries like the auto glass industry, and “all of them represent a path to something that looks a lot like prosperity,” Rowe says.
“To say it another way, a lot of the people standing behind me are small business owners who are absolutely killing it, doing things with glass that most of us don’t think twice about. They are busy beyond belief, and every single one of them is hiring. Every. Single. One,” Rowe concludes.
Rowe encourages his followers to seize the opportunities found only in America and get “Back to work.”
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Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
