The Best of Our Knowledge
(2009-11-30)
Listen Now:
ALBANY, NY
(WAMC) -
"PROFESSOR, MAY I BRING MY BABY TO CLASS?
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A STUDENT MOTHER'S GUIDE TO COLLEGE", Pt. 1 of 2 -
The United States reportedly has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the western
world. Think about it. One-million teens will become pregnant in the U.S. over
the next 12-months. Statistics indicate about one-third, meaning nearly 334-
thousand teens keep their babies each year.
The numbers are staggering. Teenagers give birth to about one in every ten
babies born in America. And according to the National Campaign to Prevent
Teen Pregnancy, less than half, maybe as few as one-third, graduate from high
school.
The Guttmacher Institute reports what seems obvious, that less teen mothers are
likely to attend college, regardless of their academic record or potential, than
child-free women their age. The poorer the young woman, the more likely she'll
become a mother. And almost half of all teen mothers end up on welfare.
So what happens when a major reality check like this interrupts a teenage girl's
life? Often they resolve to focus solely on their child, and give up on their own
dreams of graduation and going on to college. Sometimes, schools and
communities don't have the services to help young mothers pursue academic
success, get college degrees, and build a better life for themselves and their
children.
That's where Sherrill Mosee steps in. She's the author of "Professor, May I Bring
My Baby to Class? A Student Mother's Guide to College." Mosee is the Founder
and President of Family Care Solutions, a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia.
Glenn Busby reports. (8:22)
**(Find out more at: www.familycaresolutions.org.)**
GIRLS' EDUCATION IN ZIMBABWE -
The difficulties of young women continuing their education is not a story unique to the U.S. Girls' education in Zimbabwe presents many of its own challenges. TBOOK learns more from Winnie Farao, a Program Manager for CAMFED, the Campaign for Female Education.
The high cost of education in Zimbabwe, coupled with hyperinflation, has made girls education a second-tier priority. Since its inception in 1993, CAMFED reports more than 600-thousand children have benefited from its education programs in some of the poorest regions of not only Zimbabwe, but Zambia, Ghana, and Tanzania as well.
Blue Chevigny reports. (4:23)
**(More on the Campaign for Female Education at: http://us.camfed.org/.)**
GUEST COMMENTARY
"DON'T SHORTCHANGE OUR FUTURE:
INVEST IN PUBLIC HIGHER EDUCATION" -
Access to education and affordability are universal issues. Back in the United States, President Barack Obama often mentions that part of the solutions to America's economic crisis "exist in our laboratories and our universities."
Our guest commentator today is Dr. Shirley Strum Kenny, long-time President of Stony Brook University. We interviewed her many years ago here on this program, after her landmark "Boyer Commission on Educating Undergraduates in the Research University" was published.
President Kenny agrees with Mr. Obama but in this TBOOK exclusive, she comments that she believes higher education is itself in jeopardy due to the recession.
Dr. Kenny says with so many states facing budget shortfalls, public institutions of higher education are often the first to get their budgets slashed. President Kenny worries that "cutbacks are profoundly affecting public university systems from coast to coast."
Dr. Shirley Strum Kenny comments. (4:32)
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