Does NJ still have the Stars Program (transfer to, school district)

[HalfFull]

Let me get this right. I keep hearing that China and other countries are doing a better job educating their youth and are producing more kids with advanced math/science/engineering degrees. And I'll go out on a limb and guess that there is government support of that education advancement. But we don't want to incent our brightest to pursue college, and ideally stay locally and eventually contribute locally?

[manderly6]

My first thought was they probably raised some tax to pay for this and then diverted it to something completely different. Does that make me officially disillusioned?

[bradykp]

Originally Posted by suzsaz

I haven't seen anything about it recently. For those of you who don't know what the Stars program is, it allows pay the college tuition (at NJ Colleges) for the top students. I know a family who a few years back sent their twins to Rutgers for free on the Stars Program, and they built a house in Long Beach Island with the money they saved for not having to pay for their kid's education.

If this Stars Program is still in affect, then it really should be terminated. Why should the NJ taxpayers shoulder the cost of education for kids who get A's in high school just so that they stay in NJ at NJ colleges? What a rip off of the taxpayer.

i have no clue if it's effective or not, and i didn't read other posts yet...but the entire concept behind this type of program is to keep the brightest and most talented students in-state to hopefully stay and improve the local economy. that's the entire concept behind state schools in general, and why in-state students get discounted tuition. but over the years, in efforts to be more "competitive" and "diverse", state schools have let in more out-of-state students (also to plug budget gaps) and international students.

not sure how i feel about this particular item. i would love to have something like california or florida though where if you achieve certain credentials in high school, you're accepted into college at no or very low cost tuition at the in-state institutions. maybe NJ doesn't need such a program since we have jobs created simply by living near NYC and PHL, but i always liked these concepts in theory at least.

[bradykp]

Originally Posted by Ann77

I don't know the exact ROI on the program, but it does help a school's rep to have higher SAT scores.

I think it makes sense. We do export a lot of our students, and our brightest. If we can keep them here and raise the reputation of the school, great.

I feel as you do about college athletics by the way, but people tell me that's worth it too.

athletics is a tool for advertising. schools do need to advertise. if Rutgers makes a bowl game or the NCAA tournement, that's national attention for free. they always talk about this when a relatively unknown school makes the tournement they see a huge spike in applications. also, the successes of a few programs help fund other programs (in theory - hehe) and then there is the belief that team sport or even individual sport does act as a learning mechanism. i personally had a positive experience with sports throughout gradeschool and highschool. but how much money is it worth spending on these programs? who knows.

[bradykp]

Originally Posted by tahiti

Hating and jealous - you nailed it. WTF is going on with this board?

You mean your wife worked when your kids were young so you wouldn't have to rely on government programs to educate them? Horrible, neglectful parents.

my guess is a lot of NJ middle class folks get screwed on college tuition assistance. my parents worked their butts off too, but middle class northeast PA household income still qualified us for some grants, though most that my sister and I got were academic-based, we did get access to a very small federal aid. student loans are awesome! lol

[tahiti]

Originally Posted by bradykp

my guess is a lot of NJ middle class folks get screwed on college tuition assistance. my parents worked their butts off too, but middle class northeast PA household income still qualified us for some grants, though most that my sister and I got were academic-based, we did get access to a very small federal aid. student loans are awesome! lol

my mother was a retired widow on a small pension and I didn't qualify for sh** (federally that is - I got an academic based from the Women Marines). And no, there was no humungous estate either!

[tahiti]

Originally Posted by HalfFull

Let me get this right. I keep hearing that China and other countries are doing a better job educating their youth and are producing more kids with advanced math/science/engineering degrees. And I'll go out on a limb and guess that there is government support of that education advancement. But we don't want to incent our brightest to pursue college, and ideally stay locally and eventually contribute locally?

yeah, that's about it. LOL

gotta love shortsightedness.

[bradykp]

Originally Posted by HalfFull

Let me get this right. I keep hearing that China and other countries are doing a better job educating their youth and are producing more kids with advanced math/science/engineering degrees. And I'll go out on a limb and guess that there is government support of that education advancement. But we don't want to incent our brightest to pursue college, and ideally stay locally and eventually contribute locally?

we do, but we just don't want to be taxed. lol

[suzsaz]

But this is the deal. If a bright smart kid wants to stay in NJ, they will stay in NJ whether or not they are going to get a full ride. Where does the majority of kids go? I'm assuming they go to school in PA, CT, DE and NY. I bet many of those kids come back to the NJ area to work either in Manhattan or Philly. I'm sure those kids aren't running off to school in Arkansas and staying there.

In 1993 Georgia started offering the Hope Scholarship, where kids who were B or better students got to go to the University of Georgia for free. Pretty soon, those kids started showing up on college campus with fancy cars...called the Hopemobiles.....and now Georgia is in a whole bunch of financial problems.

Here's a link to the article. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/07/us/07hope.html

[suzsaz]

Here's part of it....

ATHENS, Ga. — Students here at the University of Georgia have a name for some of the fancy cars parked in the lots around campus. They call them Hopemobiles. But there may soon be fewer of them.

The cars are gifts from parents who find themselves with extra cash because their children decided to take advantage of a cherished state perk — the Hope scholarship. The largest merit-based college scholarship program in the United States it offers any Georgia high school student with a B-average four years of free college tuition.
But the Hope scholarship program is about to be cut by a new governor and Legislature facing staggering financial troubles.