Where I Stand -- Mike O'Callaghan: Las Vegas offers few excuses for not attending college

GRADUATION TIME IS HERE, and high school students and their parents are sweating. Some 1998 high school graduates are putting off college until they can afford it. Others are going out into the world of work or the military service to mature and put away some money for college. Each person must base these decisions on his or her own experience of mental comfort with entering or not entering college this fall.

I would be the last person in the world to urge a recent graduate to immediately plunge into college, unless they are ready to work. Those who enter higher education as a social activity have it all wrong and are wasting their money or the money of their parents. The campus social butterfly is wasting both time and money and is occupying a seat in classes that is being denied to a serious student.

I am concerned about the large number of graduates and their parents who don't believe college is an affordable undertaking. They are wrong. Despite all of the nonsense in the media during recent years, it doesn't cost $100,000 to achieve a college degree. Yes, the cost of higher education continues upward, but it's not out of reach of people with moderate means.

If a graduate expects to attend an Ivy League school, USC or Stanford, then it's going to cost many dollars. Of course, if the 1998 high school graduate hasn't already been accepted into one of these schools, there is little chance he will be in one of them this fall. These are excellent educational institutions, and many more applicants for admission are turned down than are accepted.

So what's wrong with going to UNLV or CCSN? Nothing. Like any other school, you can get from them exactly what you are willing to put into your studies. Your effort and the time spent in the library will determine what you leave school with after two or four years. The magic potion is sweat, eagerness to learn and not missing lectures. Not even Harvard or Stanford can unscrew your head and pour in knowledge.

So you only want to go to college part time. Then don't take a full load, and build your classes around your job. But if you do want to carry 15 semester hours, then it will cost less than a thousand dollars at CCSN. That's about $950, which covers estimated tuition, books and lab fees for each semester. Not bad, eh?

Over at UNLV, a student can carry 15 semester hours, room and board, books and supplies and still pay less than $7,500 a school year. This is certainly a deal that few other colleges can offer graduates of Nevada high schools. Without room and board, and living at home, a Nevadan can get by with $1,596 for tuition and about $500 for books and supplies next year at UNLV. This is sure a far cry from the financially devastating demands that we have come to believe are necessary to get a college education.

I have studied at several public and private colleges during the past 50 years and have found that all of them have strengths and weaknesses. Some professors have offered more in the classroom than others and, once a good student identifies a weak professor, it's up to the student to work extra hard in the library on subject matter. I can't recall any professor who didn't have something of value to offer.

Some of the best professors I have studied under were at UNLV. John Wright and Sigrid Moe made history and literature both exciting and tempting. I would almost rush from class to do additional reading to make a full meal from the tidbits they had tempted us with during lectures.

The great advantage we have in Clark County is the vast array of educational opportunities available for us no matter what hours we work or what subject matter interests us. College credits are awaiting us and so are degrees, and they aren't out of our reach financially. It's not cheap and it does take effort and personal dedication, but it's all there to be had by 1998 high school graduates.

Before leaving this subject, let me remind our large senior citizen population of the exciting educational opportunities both CCSN and UNLV have for you. Classes are available year around, and the cost is minimal. None of us lives very far from either a UNLV or CCSN classroom, and new classes are being presented every semester and during school this summer.

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