Sunday, 19 May 2002
http://www.azstarnet.com/star/today/20519GRADUATION2fmai2fmst2f.html
Chris Richards / Staff
Some of this year's graduates, from high schools across Tucson,
share what they are planning to do in their post-high-school lives.
Some are going into the military, others into college and some
into the work world. Their comments and experiences are published
today in a separate story.
"Moving away from home will be a reality shock. The idea
of living on my own is scary and exciting - it will be liberating
because I need to go out and experience the world for myself."
Crystal Brown
Flowing Wells High School senior
Low pay and high living expenses daunting prospects for class
of '02
By Sarah Garrecht Gassen
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
The Class of 2002 graduates this week into a Tucson with a sluggish economy and a university and community college that are slashing budgets.
The graduates will find more of their classmates joining the military in wartime.
And those going out on their own may need the equivalent of two minimum-wage jobs just to stay afloat.
Here's a look at what lies ahead for the nearly 9,000 local grads:
Housing
High school graduation often means moving out on one's own, but the real world can come with sticker shock, says Marshall Vest, director of economic and business research at the University of Arizona.
The new responsibilities of covering rent, utility payments, car payments, insurance and grocery bills can be a rude awakening to just how far a paycheck doesn't stretch.
A rough budget, allowing for rent, car, clothes, food and utilities, indicates that a job paying $10 an hour is the approximate minimum required to live alone - although people do it on less, Vest said.
"It depends on your living standard, like how many toys you have to have, what kind of car you have to drive, the kind of clothes you buy, and so forth," Vest said.
"But minimum wage won't cut it," he said.
Pinching pennies puts people in the market for roommates, which can be the biggest problem in renting, said Art Wadlund, a partner in Hendricks & Partners, which specializes in the Tucson apartment market.
Some newer apartment complexes cater to students and rent units by the bedroom, while traditional leases leave all roommates responsible for the entire apartment, Wadlund said. That means if your roommate splits suddenly, you're on the hook for all of the rent.
Properties that cater to college students are filling up faster than usual, Wadlund said. So he suggests looking for more diverse apartment complexes a few miles from campus to find affordable housing.
"I am as prepared as I could be," said Crystal Brown, who will graduate from Flowing Wells High School. "Academically, I think my teachers and school have given me the knowledge I need for college.
"But moving away from home will be a reality shock," she said. "The idea of living on my own is scary and exciting - it will be liberating because I need to go out and experience the world for myself."
Brown plans to live with her best friend in an off-campus apartment, work to pay the bills and attend the UA next fall.
Apartment rent averaged $549 per month in 2001 and won't change much this year, said Wadlund. Generally, studio apartments start at $350 and two-bedrooms run between $550 and $650, he said.
"Historically, and this year is no exception, May and June are the two very best months to rent because you get the most concessions because this is the slowest time of year," Wadlund said.
"If anybody is considering renting, do it now and don't wait until mid-August when all the students come back because the concessions will be diminished and rents will be higher," he said.
The UA is hoping to avoid a repeat of previous years when a shortage of dorm space forced some students to live in a nearby hotel and residence hall lounges. The university will no longer allow students to remain in campus housing beyond four semesters and is assigning rooms on a first-come, first-served basis.
Work
Nationally, large companies are taking a wait-and-see attitude when it comes to filling job openings, but small businesses are more willing to hire, a trend that holds up locally, said the UA's Vest.
The economic outlook for Tucson is improving, but finding a job that pays more than minimum wage is still tough with only a high school diploma.
Pima County government, the seventh-largest local employer with about 7,000 workers, has a hiring freeze because of budget woes, but even in good times few jobs are available to someone fresh out of high school with no related work experience, said Nick Applegate, supervisor of recruitment selection for the county human resources department.
"It's kind of tough breaking into the county jobs right out of high school," he said. "People are usually looking at the benefits side of the job package, and that makes it attractive to people who have even 10 years experience, and that makes it very difficult for a high school graduate without a lot of experience."
The county receives 1,200 applications per month for an average of 100 job postings, he said.
The job categories that are available to someone with a high school diploma - clerical, custodial and trades - start at $7.67 an hour, Applegate said.
Some private-sector jobs may start at a lower wage, but there is room to move up, said Norma Hammack, business manager for the Tucson franchise of Jack In The Box fast-food restaurants. The chain employs 450 to 500 people locally.
Food workers earn around minimum wage, about $5.25 per hour, but they can move up to a shift leader managerial position and earn $9.50 an hour within a year, Hammack said.
Tucson's largest private employer, Raytheon Missile Systems, has few jobs open to high school graduates, said spokeswoman Sara Hammond.
"We don't have many opportunities for people who don't have technical education or skills," she said, advising interested grads to start at Pima Community College.
It may seem obvious, but Vest said some new grads entering the work force lack rudimentary skills, like getting to work on time.
"The important thing is to get a job, learn about the world of work, learn what it means to show up every day if you want to or not, to learn about working with others," he said.
Education
About a quarter of all high school graduates in Pima County will attend PCC, while about 1,500 of the new UA freshmen will be local students.
Others will enter the work force directly or attend a trade school to gain specific skills or certification.
UA freshmen will be starting their college careers amid budget problems that could have an effect on their education, said Rick Kroc, director of assessment and enrollment research.
"It's going to be mighty hard to maintain the level of support we've had to keep classes available, class size down, make sure we have our tenure- or tenure-track faculty in the classrooms of freshmen and sophomores," Kroc said. (See related story on facing page.)
Tuition at the UA and PCC has increased slightly from last year, to $2,508 per year for the UA and to $38 per credit hour at PCC.
UA officials have warned they'll strictly enforce payment deadlines this year.
April 1 was the deadline for new freshmen to apply to UA; transfer students can still apply.
Apollo College offers certification in the medical and computer fields and has been recruiting at local high schools, said Stan Basurto, admissions representative.
The college enrolls most of its students in August and September, although classes start on a monthly basis, Basurto said.
Apollo College has about 300 students enrolled now, he said. "It's mostly medical, because the medical field is going to be here forever. This is a foot in the door for them," he said.
Computer and electronic skills are popular trade school majors, said Tim Riordan, dean of ITT Tech school in Tucson.
"I can unequivocally state that everyone is going in the direction of information technology," he said.
Marketing, management information systems and psychology are among the most popular degrees at the UA.
Military
Local Air Force recruitment is up 23 percent over last May, said Master Sgt. Jimmy Jones, Air Force recruiting supervisor for Southern Arizona.
The Air Force enlists 200 to 300 recruits from Southern Arizona each year, he said. Most of the enlistees are new graduates, although some people enlist while still in high school, planning for after graduation.
The Army and Air Force are seeing more students and soon-to-be graduates enlisting in the armed services, recruiters said.
"It's always a busy season because it's the time of year when kids are posed with a situation and the realization that it's time to make plans for the future," Jones said.
"High schools is where our major market is, but we also hit community colleges and four-year colleges and charter schools," he said. "We go wherever the kids are."
The Army is also receiving more interest, prompted by the Sept. 11 attacks, said Capt. Brett Picard, Tucson company commander.
The most popular programs are officers candidate school, which requires a bachelor's degree, and warrant officer flight training, which only requires a high school diploma, Picard said.
"We're the only service that can send someone to flight school to become a pilot without a bachelor's degree," he said.
Picard said more people have enlisted this year than last, but he credits better recruiting efforts. Like the other armed services, people can enlist while still in high school as well as after graduation.
"Usually the determining factor is people's situations change; the money for college may not be there; they didn't get into the school they wanted; or a family situation may change," Picard said.
The Tucson recruiting office enlisted 488 people last year.
"June and July are the two heaviest months for shipping graduates out," he said.
Desert View High School senior John Nelson enlisted in the Navy on Sept. 10. The next morning he and his father watched the World Trade Center and Pentagon under attack.
He asked to ship out in January, but his recruiter convinced him to stay and graduate with his class.
"I've always wanted to serve the country, and now in a time of need I get more pride out of it, I guess," Nelson said.
"If something happens to me, oh well," he said. "I would rather die fighting to save the country than die working at McDonald's or something."
* Contact Sarah Garrecht Gassen at 573-4117 or at sgassen@azstarnet.com.
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