printable versionOutreach effort promotes higher education
The university is participating in a national public outreach campaign to raise awareness about higher education's critical role in the future of the global economy. Nearly 400 U.S. colleges and universities have joined in support of "Solutions for Our Future," including Stanford, through its membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU).
The multi-year campaign, which launched on March 14, is utilizing national television, radio and newspaper advertisements. One of three humorous public service ads for television features a parcel business using pigeons to deliver packages by air. The spot ends by saying that innovations such as overnight delivery and Google—founded by Sergey Brin and Larry Page while they pursued doctoral studies in computer science at Stanford—were spawned on college campuses.
A pamphlet from the Washington-based American Council on Education, which is running the campaign, cites that 462 start-up businesses stemming from the inventions of professors and students were formed in 2004. The pamphlet also states that for every 100 ninth graders in the United States, 67 graduate from high school, 39 enter college, and of those, 26 are still enrolled by their sophomore year.
The initiative has three primary goals: to increase awareness of the public benefits of higher education; to enable every campus to do its part in meeting the nation's needs for higher education; and to make higher education a public policy priority.
In addition to partnering with the AAU, the council is working with other higher education associations, individual colleges and universities, corporate sponsors, news media outlets and civic leaders. To get involved and to see the TV ads, go to http://www.solutionsforourfuture.org/.