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Estrella Mountain community college commenced on May 11th after a commencement ceremony with hopes of creating a new generation of inquirers, innovators, business leaders and builders.

Graduates of today are the leaders of tomorrow. They will bring communities together and transform the workforce to carry our country forward to a more prosperous future. Colleges today have the huge responsibility of providing skills to graduates who will then go on to lead our country.

Entire communities can be transformed by opportunities provided to students that include financial aid. Finance plays a major role in allowing lower societal strata students to pursue training and education opportunities and gain a foothold in the middle class.

The world today is fast changing and not every day is the same. Graduates and aspiring graduates wake up every single day not knowing what to expect. If they have to survive in this ever changing, competitive global environment, they must be equipped with highly specialized skills and knowledge. This is the only way they can compete and survive.

At least 9.4 per cent of our high school graduates who did not have the opportunity to afford college education remain unemployed. This figure is at least twice as much as those who have a bachelor’s degree. There has been a significant improvement in the rate of progress in Arizona. In March 2011, this figure stood at 9.6 per cent and dropped to 8.6 per cent in March 2012.

It is imperative for us to sustain this growth and also continue to progress in the long term. For this, we must first instil faith in youngsters that their investment in higher education will not be in vain. What they sow today, they will reap tomorrow throughout their careers.

Youngsters must also be motivated to pursue higher education by reassuring them that the training they receive will meet the labor market’s needs. This is the only way to honor their trust in their investment value. Irrespective of their means, these opportunities must be extended to all.

If July1st comes and goes without any action by the Congress, we will fail 7.4 million students saddled with federal student loans. As their interest rate doubles we would have miserably failed their high expectations. Our middle class will be entirely priced out of their higher education opportunities and this will be an economic disaster our country may not ever be able to come out of.

Take for example Arizona. Here there are thousands of employers desperately looking for workers with skills they require to grow their business. Many fields are short of workers including technology, health care, manufacturing and business services. Unless higher education is made more affordable, these businesses will remain deprived of skilled workers and their prospects will be undermined.

Today’s graduates are up for the challenge even though the fact remains that they cannot be guaranteed that they will not encounter any professional setbacks. They are certainly bubbling with enthusiasm and life and are looking for nothing more than a fair shot at education. If we cannot do this for them, we are depriving ourselves of a better future.