30-03-2025
Higher education degree still valuable, NEPA higher education leaders say
Robotic arms moved around as Lackawanna College student Karim Vaquero and his classmate Luke Kotcho entered commands on remote controls.
As they entered prompts, the robotic arms drew squares with a highlighter on a large sheet of paper.
Vaquero, who resides in Carbondale, is hopeful the skills he's learning in the college's Robotics and Automation program will land him a job working with robots.
'That's kind of the future,' he said. 'Robotics and automation is basically going to be the primary choice for major corporations.'
As colleges grapple with declining enrollment, mounting student debt, high tuition and political debates over how they teach race and other topics, Americans are questioning the value and cost of a higher education degree.
Only 36% of adults say they have a 'great deal' or 'quite a lot' of confidence in higher education, a decline from 57% in 2015, according to a report released last year by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation.
A similar survey conducted by the Pew Research Center last year found 35% of adults say a college degree is somewhat important, while 40% say it's not too or not at all important. Roughly half, or 49%, of respondents said it is less important to have a four-year college degree today in order to get a well-paying job than it was 20 years ago.
Leaders of higher education institutions in Northeast Pennsylvania say earning a college degree leads to opportunities in today's workplace.
Those with a degree earn $1 million more than those without one, are less likely to be unemployed and more likely to have health insurance, they said. Attending a higher education institution teaches students skills like the ones Vaquero and Kotcho are learning that can be transferred to the workforce.
Lynn Pasquerella, president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, pointed to a survey the association conducted in 2023 showing eight in 10 employers agree a higher education prepares graduates to succeed in the workforce. Credentials, which are usually short-term programs that lead to a certificate, are also increasingly being valued by employers.
'There's a strong correlation between the knowledge, skills, mindsets and dispositions that employers are seeking, which they think are essential for success at the entry level and for advancement in their companies, and the liberal education that students receive,' she said.
The leaders say some professions, like health care, require that employees have a degree or certification.
'A lot of the programs that we offer require some sort of formal training,' T.J. Eltringham, Lackawanna College's chief operating officer, said. 'There's still that need for post-secondary training.'
Some of the college's programs, including nursing, cybersecurity and robotics, were launched with the intention of filling local employers' need for people with those skills. Students enrolled at the college, many of whom live in Northeast Pennsylvania, can fill those positions, he said.
'We're training students that are going to stay here and are working,' Eltringham said.
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First-year students Karim Vaquero and Luke Kotcho program robots to draw a shape at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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First-year student Luke Kotcho provides instructions to a robot at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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Robots that Robotics and Integrated Technology Program Director Rob Crane and his students utilize in a classrom at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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Robotics and Integrated Technology Program Director Rob Crane talks about one of the machines in a classroom at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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First-year student Karim Vaquero gives a robot instructions to draw a shape at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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First-year student Luke Kotcho programs a robot at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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First-year student Luke Kotcho maneuvers a robot at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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First-year students Karim Vaquero and Luke Kotcho program robots to draw a shape at Lackawanna College in Scranton on Tues., March 11, 2025.
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Robotics and Automation Program Director Rob Crane takes a hands-on approach to teaching his students different aspects of the fields.
'I think it prepares them in that they can hit the ground running from day one,' he said.
Students also learn more that prepares them for the workforce than just the classes in their major. Eltringham said college teaches students skills like communication and how to work with a team.
At the University of Scranton, students are required to take English, philosophy, theology and history in addition to the classes in their major. The Rev. Joseph Marina, S.J., the university's president, says these core curriculum classes teach students to be critical thinkers.
'We equip them to be ethical leaders, great communicators,' he said. 'They know how to problem solve at the workplace.'
Local higher education institutions are adapting to meet the needs of today's workplace. With technology evolving, students and faculty are learning to use tools like AI to support their work and learning, Marina said. The university has also evolved to accept students of all faiths and celebrates diversity.
Technology has also allowed the University of Scranton to expand its degree programs, offering many graduate degrees, most recently psychiatric nursing, online.
The construction of the Robert S. and Marilyn A. Weiss Hall on Madison Avenue on the University of Scranton campus will help develop the local workforce, Marina said.
Eltringham said the certificate programs offered at Lackawanna College allow students to obtain a certificate, enter the workforce and return for either an associate or bachelor's degree.
Pasquerella said colleges need to improve on aligning what students are learning with what they could do for a career. She said e-portfolios and other mechanisms, as well as internships, show students how the skills they're learning connect to careers.
'Just being mindful of the ways in which we can help through the curriculum make those explicit connections between curriculum and career will help them identify not only a job that's going to be high paying, but a job that will help fulfill them throughout their lives,' she said.
