"Could it be that deficiencies in our public education funding weakened the ability of our young adults to succeed in college?" Do you think?? The greatest deficiency is a shortage of good teachers. Since women are now fully welcomed into all of the other professions, many good and capable women no longer choose education, especially since many of these other professions are also even more family friendly. Those that choose education soon find it often to be stressful and thankless. They then quit and go into another profession that more than likely even pays more. Supply and demand will require that teacher pay move off the bottom rung of the wage ladder, or we can expect a much more serious decline in education than we have been experiencing.