Education can help close poverty gap

Education can play a significant role in closing the poverty gap between whites and minorities, a new census report shows.

The 2000 Census showed whites in Utah had a lower poverty rate than minorities, but a more detailed census report released today shows that a college education reduces the disparity or eliminates it altogether.

The report shows that the greatest differences in poverty rates between those with bachelor's degrees and those without any college education were found among American Indian and Alaska natives, blacks, native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders and Hispanics. For whites and Asians, the difference was not as great.

"Educational attainment still is a driver for income, and that's proven out for every race and every ethnicity," said Neil Ashdown, deputy director for the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget. "It seems to have a larger impact on certain sectors of the population than others."

The data, which includes information for the population age 18 and older, shows that of those American Indians or Alaska Natives who didn't have any higher education, 38.2 percent were living under the poverty level.

For those with a bachelor's degree, 6.8 percent were living below the poverty level.

Ruby Steele, president of Utah State University's Native American Student Council, says one possible reason for the disparity in poverty rates could be because people who live on reservations can have a hard time finding work.

"Jobs are very limited on the reservation," said Steele, who is majoring in biology.

Those who get a degree are in a position to find a good job that pays well. Those who come from a reservation often go back there to work and contribute to the community, she said.

For blacks, 27.9 percent of those without a college education were living in poverty, compared with 8.4 percent of those with a college degree, according to the data.

Almost 10 percent of Hispanics or Latinos with bachelor's degrees were living under the poverty threshold in 2000, compared with 20.7 percent of Hispanics without a college education.

For those with degrees, islanders had the lowest percentage of people living in poverty, with 2.4 percent. For those without any higher education, 15.3 percent were living in poverty.

Of whites living in Utah, 3.5 percent who had obtained a bachelor's degree were living under the poverty level, compared with 9.5 percent of whites who had no college experience. Of Asians, 12.1 percent of those with bachelor's degrees were living in poverty compared with 14.3 percent who did not have bachelor's degrees.

Of people without any higher education experience, whites had the lowest poverty rate. But of those with a bachelor's degree, native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders had the lowest poverty rate.

While educational attainment plays a large factor in determining income, previous census releases also show that the most and least educated people in the state do not necessarily match up with the average highest and lowest paid.

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