The Need for Higher Education in Moab Grand County

Moab Utah Our Challenges Our Current Students Our Dreams Our Vision Our Reality

Educational opportunities in Moab, Grand County Utah are much like a des-ert. It is arid environment with sparse opportunities. Education attempts to eke out a survival in a wild and uninhabited land that is desolate or forbidding.

The Utah population is unique in that it is considerably different from the Eastern States and even many of the Western States. It is one of the most urban states in that 80% of the population is located in Provo, Salt Lake City, and Ogden along the Wasatch Front and also one of the most rural states in that it has only 27.2 persons per square mile as compared to 79.6 average for the United States.

Many communities in rural Utah, like Moab, have lost their economic base. Unfortunately, the major export is our children. Many residents in Moab cannot leave and are lost in a desert of no hope or opportunity.

A Community of Challenges In a land of arches, natural bridges and great canyons, visitors can do cy-cling, hiking, 4-wheeling, white water rafting, motorcycling, climbing, sightseeing, and exploring. However the person who may be preparing food, get the boats ready for the river, cleaning rooms, or selling souvenirs is more than likely the working poor. The working poor are evident in Moab Grand County Utah. The economy of the area is seasonal tourist based. Each year the community hires between 1,500 – 2,000 seasonal workers. This population is worked for eight months and then summarily laid off. This cycle repeats itself year after year. Many residents live well below the poverty level, work minimal wage jobs, and have no health benefits.

Some of the characteristics of the working poor include:

Has never been to collegeMay work shift work

They may have graduated from high schoolTend to float from job to job

Lack of hope Come from a single parent family

May have difficulty with reading and writingMay be suffering from depression

Lack of opportunityThey leave their children at home to work

Probably doesn’t have health insurance Stuck in a dead-end job

They are likely to be femaleThey are likely divorced

They are likely to be single parents themselves.

Shipler, David (2004)

The Working Poor Invisible in America, Alfred A. Knopf Publisher

Scholarship / Tuition Assistance for Spring 2007 semester

Utah State University Moab (USU-Moab) has minimal scholarship monies. The Campus Center does not qualify for scholarship assistance from our main campus 350 miles away. For 2006-2007, the scholarship budget was $14,000 for two semesters from all sources.

The following table shows tuition awards, how our students pay for their college education, gender, average student age, and number of students who work and attend college, ethicity of current students, and field of study. There are more applications than there are funds to cover the need.

Tuition Assistance Awards for Spring 2007Full Tuition Scholarships Available ($1918) 0Half Time Scholarships Available ($ 809) 0$500 Tuition Assistant Awards (12+ credits) 8 awards$250 Tuition Assistant awards (6-11 credits) 8 awards

How USU Moab Students Pay for School(Students maybe in multiple categories)

Pell-Grants and Stafford Loans 31Facts or Self Pay 21Students receiving Workforce Services or Vocational Rehabilitation Assistance 13 Veterans 1

Gender, Number of Single Parent StudentsAge and Total Student Population

Sixteen percent of the student population are single parents. They are not only attending school, but also raising children and working in the community.

Gender Single Parents Age Range # Students Male 1 23-60 21 Female 9 18-66 42

Average Student Age at Utah State University Moab33

Percentage of USU Moab students who work either full or part-timeand attending classes

98%

Ethnicity by Gender

Ethnicity Female Male White, not Hispanic 34 20 Indian/Alaskan native 3 0 Other, not specified 1 0 Hispanic 4 1 Black, not Hispanic 0 0 Totals 42 21

A Higher Educational Presence in Moab / Grand County

There has been a higher educational presence in the area for 40 years. Utah State University (USU) began offering programs in late sixties by flying professors to the region to teach classes a couple of days a week.

Around 1985, the College of Eastern Utah (CEU) in Price Utah petitioned and was granted by the Utah Board of Regents to be allowed to provide the first two-years of the academic experience. USU would only provide the junior, senior, and advanced degree options in the community. Neither USU or CEU had any permanent faculty. The community never made the transition to a local college, since services were coming from other providers outside of Grand County.

As technology expanded the ‘flying professors’ were replaced with telephone conferencing, video conferencing, satellite and internet, and now interactive video. The College of Eastern Utah in 2002 dropped their college program and left the commu-nity. USU again became responsible for freshman through graduate programs. Building enrollments and momentum for education in Moab and Grand County has been a chal-lenge, but enrollments are on the rise.

In the 40 years of higher education in Grand County, no endowed scholarship fund was created, no faculty was ever hired permanently, and not until 2004, a building purchased for the use by higher education. Our community is still dependent on other schools in other communities on what we can offer. Many students needs go unserved.

Demographics of the USU Moab Students for Spring 2007

Primary College Major Name Number of studentsAgriculture Family and Consumer Sciences 1Business Business 1 Business Administration 10Continuing Education Associate Degrees 30Education and Human Ser Early Childhood Education 1 Early Childhood Cert 1 Elementary Education 1 Psychology 2 Psychology Teaching 1Humanities, Arts, & Soc Sci Liberal Arts 1Science Biology 1 Nursing 3 Public Health 1University Studies General Studies 2 Undeclared 5 Undeclared (Business) 1 Undeclared (Science) 1Total enrollment for Spring Semester 2007 63 3% increase from 05-06Enrollment for Spring Semester 2006 60

(Source: USU Banner Warehouse Information 2007)

The present provider of academic offerings Utah State University is limited in the types of programs it can offer. Any major that requires a lab associated with course or degree cannot be offered. Take for example those wanting to major in nursing. Those individuals can complete 27 credit hours of prerequisite courses, but such classes as anatomy, physiology, chemistry, and biology that require labs cannot be offered.

The student is forced to travel to the nearest residential campus (there are three, but each is nearly 100 miles from Moab) to take these courses. Furthermore, many of these classes are two days a week, which would mean a person would have to commute 400 miles a week to and from classes.

Associate of Science Focus Areas

Pre-BusinessPre-Computer SciencePre-Liberal Arts Pre-PsychologyPre-Family & Human DevelopmentPre-Elementary EducationPre-HistoryPre-Health ScienceOffice System SupportPre Early Childhood

Bachelors DegreesAccountingBusinessComputer ScienceElementary Education (with Blanding)EntrepreneurshipInterdisciplinary DegreePsychologyEnglish/History (Secondary Education)

Masters Degrees

Natural ResourcesComputer ScienceElementary EducationEnglish - Technical Writing (on-line)Family & Human DevelopmentPsychology (School Counseling)Secondary Education

Minors & Certificates

Business Information MinorFamily & Human Development MinorHistory MinorPsychology MinorSociology MinorAdministration /Supervisory CertificateReading Certificate (Basic or Advanced)School Library Media CertificationEarly Childhood Education Endorsement

Degrees Available through Distance Education While the list of potential degrees is impressive, many of the classes are offered during the day, which is conducive to an adult population’s work schedule, or are offered on a two or three year cohort cycle.

Partnerships The following groups are working towards the development of a residential campus in Moab Grand County

Workforce ServicesVocational Rehabilitation

Grand County School DistrictUtah State University Moab

Grand CountyMoab City

Grand Foundation for Higher Education

Vision The Grand Foundation for Higher Education was established to turn the dream of a college campus into a vision and into a reality. The Foundation will partnership with all educational providers that have a physical presence in Grand County. Together we will provide educational opportunities for our population and become an education-al center for the world.

We believe that we can attract many students who are interested in specific degrees in areas as natural resources, ecology, and recreation-tourism. By combining strong academic programs with unique learning environment, we believe we could at-tract and educate students from around the world.

The Foundation envisions a multifaceted campus that combines vocational tech-nical education, allied health, four-year college degrees. The Moab Learning Campus would be able to offer certificate, associate, bachelors and advanced degrees from one center core.

Our vision is for a Learning Campus. Our goals are as followed:

1. Establish a tuition assistance fund to help our students and grow enrollments2. Classroom building, administration, multi-media, and student center building3. Natural resources and environmental recreation degree program4. Allied health and industrial technology5. Colorado Plateau Learning and Research Center (includes labs for natural sci- ence, environmental studies, BLM, USGS, and graduate students)6. Fine Arts and Literature Center (pottery, drawing, painting, sculpture, writing, and research)7. Residential living for students