6 Thursday, March 6, 2003Index

Allison Schullerfor the Index

The University’s graduation ratesare the highest in Missouri and maybe the cause of a higher post-gradua-tion placement rate.

The University reports a job-placement rate of 98 percent fromthe 2002 graduating class.

Lesa Ketterlinus, director of theUniversity Career Center, said anyjob qualifies as placement whetheror not it is related to the student’sarea of study.

“It’s almost impossible to make adistinction,” Ketterlinus said. “Youcould have somebody who’s waitingtables because there’s a six-monthgap until they start graduate schoolor because they really want to getinto the restaurant management busi-ness and need to get their foot in thedoor.”

According to the Career Center’sannual reports, the math and com-puter science division has the overallhighest placement rate of 98.3 per-cent since 1998.

Jason Miller, assistant professorof mathematics, said there could be anumber of reasons why the divisionhas high placement.

“[Math and computer sciencemajors] graduate with very refined

analytic and problem-solving skills,”Miller said. “That, coupled with lib-eral arts skills, may help make ourmath and computer science majorsmore attractive to employers.”

According to University statis-tics, increases in graduate schoolplacement result in decreases inemployment placement and viceversa.

Kathy Rieck, dean of admissoinsand records, said the economy playsa role in a student’s decision to workor enroll in graduate school.

“In this kind of economy wherecompanies are downsizing ratherthan hiring, [it’s a factor] that drivesup graduate school enrollment,”Rieck said.

Ketterlinus said graduation place-ment rates are assessed from sixweeks before graduation to sixmonths after graduation.

Senior B.J. Smith, a businessadministration major, will graduatein May, which is within four years ofher initial enrollment. She said shedoes not have a job yet.

“I don’t know what I’m doingyet,” Smith said. “I should probablylook soon.”

Ketterlinus said the Career Centerhas a four-year checklist that mapswhat students can do each year toprepare for a career.

“Starting earlier is the biggestkey,” Ketterlinus said.

Graduation RatesAccording to University admis-

sions documents, 43.9 percent of the1998 enrollment class graduated infour years. Sixty-four percent of the1996 enrollment class graduated infive years, and 66.1 percent graduat-ed in six years.

“They’re the highest in Missourifor public institutions,” Rieck said.“They are low when compared tosome states.”

Rieck said factors such as ease oftransfer to four-year Missouri insti-tutions affect the graduation rate.

Selective private institutions alsohave a higher graduation rate, Riecksaid.

According to U.S. News andWorld Report in 2002, the top 50 lib-eral arts colleges, most of which areprivate, have four-year graduationrates ranging from 68 percent to 92percent.

Rieck said the trend is no longer afour-year graduation rate, however.

“In higher education in general,they talk about five-year and six-year graduation rates rather thanfour-year,” Rieck said.

She said some students are takinglighter loads, changing majors,

interning or studying abroad, all ofwhich make it more difficult to grad-uate in four years.

Josh Grimes, a fifth-year seniorwho plans to graduate in May, saidthere are a few reasons he didn’tgraduate in four years.

“I changed my major once, faileda couple classes and retook someclasses,” Grimes said.

According to a November 2002ACT Inc. news release, 51 percent ofcollege students graduate from bac-calaureate institutions within fiveyears of initial enrollment. TheUniversity’s 62.7 percent five-yeargraduation rate is higher than thefive-year national average rates of41.2 percent for public institutionsand 55.5 percent for private institu-tions.

The University’s graduation rateis higher than national rates, but theUniversity has a goal for the rate toincrease.

“That was a major focus of thenew [institutional] planning docu-ment,” Rieck said. “The goal is 75percent.”

Rieck said the University isworking to achieve its goal by doingthings as simple as rebidding thefood service, renovating the resi-dence halls and making curricularreforms.

Proposed bill would decrease minimum age of representatives

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House committee passesresolution that wouldallow 22-year-olds to serve

Jessica Walterfor the Index

The Missouri Legislature intro-duced legislation Feb. 10 to reducethe age eligibility for the MissouriHouse of Representatives.

House Joint Resolution 14 waspassed with a 12-0 vote after beingheard by the Elections Committee onMarch 4.

HJR14 was introduced to theHouse as a proposed constitutionalamendment that would lower the agerequirement for election to theMissouri House of Representatives

to 22. “There are no age qualifications

for a lot of other offices such as sec-retary of state,” said Rep. BrianYates, R-56th district, one of thesponsors of the resolution. “Thisopens the door for this age group toget involved.”

The resolution will now be sent tothe House floor for debate and thenanother vote. If the House passes it,HJR14 will be sent to the Senate. If itpasses there, it will show up on thenext ballot.

“It’s a constitutional change thatwould have to go to the vote of thepeople,” Yates said.

According to the Missouri consti-tution, representatives must be atleast 24 years old, and senators mustbe at least 30 years old.

Clint Collins, a fifth-year senior atthe University of Missouri-Rolla, hasbeen working closely with HJR14 inJefferson City, Mo.

He said he was jumping up anddown after it passed committee.

“Brian did a great job of smooth-ing everything out and getting thevotes,” Collins said.

Collins said he thinks the collegeage group has a lot to offer and oftenis ignored.

“Don’t tell me our age group isirresponsible,” Collins said.“Politicians don’t pay attention to usbecause we don’t vote, and we don’tvote because politicians don’t payattention to us.

“By lowering this age restriction,we hope that Missouri’s young menand women will see that their voices

do count and will take advantage ofthe opportunity to serve their fellowcitizens.”

According to a recentpress release from hisoffice, Yates said it isimportant to get youngerpeople involved becauseof the eight-year termlimit for representatives.

The Missouri consti-tution limits all legisla-tors to a maximum ofeight years in eachchamber of the General Assembly.

“With many long-term representa-tives now term-limited out, and onlyeight years available to newcomers,we need to open the door for youngermen and women to serve,” Yates stat-ed in the press release. “With eight-

year term limits, a representativeelected at 21 would be unable to seekelection to the Senate until he or she

turned 30.” Every state except

Arizona, Colorado,Delaware, Kentuckyand Utah has lower agequalifications for ser-vice in the House ofRepresentatives thanMissouri.

“Who says maturitystarts at 24?” Collins

said. “Alcohol says it starts at 21, andwar says it starts at 18.”

Senior Beth Evers, who had aninternship in Jefferson City, said ageshould not be an issue.

“I think it’s a good idea becausethere are capable 22-year-olds that

can accurately represent their con-stituents,” Evers said.

She said that if a candidate wereincompetent for the job, regardless ofage, that person would not be elected.

Yates also added an amendment toHJR14 on March 4 to lower the ageof eligibility to the Senate from 30 to25.

Joseph Pulitzer, for whom thejournalism prize is named, servedillegally in the Missouri House ofRepresentatives when he was 22years old. Former PresidentTheodore Roosevelt served legally inthe New York House ofRepresentatives when he was 23.Derrick Seaver, a representative inthe Ohio House, was elected at age18 in 2000. He is now serving hissecond term in office.

Reports show high placement

National number of college students whograduate from baccalaureate institutionswithin five years of initial enrollment.

Percentage of Truman studentswho graduate within five yearsof enrollment.

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51%

62.7%

75% Truman’s goal for five-yyear graduation rates.

“Don’t tell me ourage group is

irresponsible.”

Clint CollinsUMR senior, proponent

of HJR 14

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Sarah Donnell/Index