Santos: 'Demographic Cliff' explains why dozens of universities are recruiting in RGV

MCALLEN, Texas - The reason dozens of universities and colleges from other parts of the country are actively recruiting in the Rio Grande Valley can be explained in part by the so-called “Demographic Cliff.”This is the opinion of Dr. Adolfo Santos, first assistant provost at the Texas A&M University Higher Eduction Center in McAllen. Santos is also a professor of political science at the Bush School at Texas A&M in College Station.The “Demographic Cliff” is a termed coined by economist and Professor Nathan Grawe of Carleton College. Grace says it is a major headwind for higher education, as it is anticipated that the number of 18-22 year-olds will be significantly lower over the next two decades.Asked by so many other universities and colleges want to lure away the Valley’s best and brightest, Santos said: “The demographic changes that are happening in our country are such that young people are disappearing in droves from higher education. This is particularly true in the Midwest. It's particularly true in the New England region. There are lots of parts of the United States where there just aren't enough young people to keep the university that exists going.”Santos said that is not true in the Valley.“We are graduating over 20,000 kids from high school (per year) in the four counties that make up the Rio Grande Valley. And they (universities and colleges from other parts of the country) are realizing, oh, this is where the young people aren't. Let's come and try and recruit them, to take them away to other places.”Santos said Texas A&M is trying to meet the demand here.“We know, from our own experience, that we can admit a lot of students to our university (in College Station) from the Rio Grande Valley but if they don't enroll it, if they don't start, because they don't want to go far from home, we’ve lost that opportunity. So, our leadership rightly said, well, let's build a campus where they are, and that's why we're here (in McAllen).”Santos added: “The changes that we're seeing in higher education are referred to as the Demographic Cliff. A lot of universities are struggling in a very significant way to keep their heads above water because they don't have the revenue coming in from tuition and fees and that sort of thing that students would bring in. So, some of them are starting to realize, hey, why don't we go where the students are and they're coming to places like the Rio Grande Valley.”Santos made his comments in an exclusive and in-depth audio interview with the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service at an Open House A&M held recently at the McAllen campus. In the interview, Santos spoke about future plans for the McAllen center and gave his suggestions on how the Valley can stop the so-called Brain Drain. Go to www.riograndeguardian.com to read the latest border news stories and watch the latest news videos.