COVID-19 Effects on Local Hardware Stores

 COVID-19 Effects on Local Hardware Stores 

Makaila Dischler

We’ve seen the corona virus affect our lives in many different ways-- social isolation, deserted stores/shopping areas, and economic declines. I’ve had the scary but nonetheless interesting honor of seeing this closeup in a local hardware store that I work at. Our sales have surged as many have seen other businesses close, which is odd. Hardware stores were pronounced essential businesses as we were put on a state-wide mandated lockdown. This meant everyone was stuck as home and couldn’t proceed with their daily activities. What did that mean? Home improvement projects: yard work, redoing rooms in the house, or building things we saw on pinterest/tik tok. Our ATB (average transaction balance) grew up to 60% in just a few days of the lockdown in place and our online transactions went up a 1000%. For reference, I didn’t even know we had the capabilities of doing online orders until COVID-19 and I’ve been working there for almost a year and a half. 

Although many small businesses have suffered through the pandemic, as customers no longer could shop as they once did. Such as the personal interest for window shopping, and the ability to move throughout stores. Ace Hardware had a positive impact in revenues due to the free time many people were experiencing, and the increase of at home time. Many families noticed leaky faucets, or new projects to start up as they sat safely at home. As shown in “First Quarter 2020, by Ace Hardware” the revenue from quarter one in 2019 has increased by 3.8%. Along with the net income increasing by a large percentage, 60.2%. Around the first quarter of 2019, the gross profit of ace hardwares was around $36.8 million and within 3-4 months of 2020 the profit was $52.8 million which meant an increase of $16 million dollars in a short period of time. Another number worth mentioning is just for seasonal spring items (occuring during the time of the pandemic) profit increased around $69 million. 

Despite many stores having to use a maximum capacity, the Elliott’s Ace Hardware in Pewaukee did not-- even though the majority of our open days were occupied beyond capacity limitations, but couldn’t do anything about that because of corporate. Instead, our stores shortened our hours from 7:30 am- 8:00 pm to 9:00 am- 6pm on weekdays and 9:00 am- 4:00 pm on weekends. To our surprise, even with shortened hours, there was a surge in profit and it was beyond busier than what it would be normally. 

Works cited:

https://newsroom.acehardware.com/ace-hardware-reports-record-first-quarter-2020-results/ 

Food Deserts and Their Causes

 Food deserts and their causes

Aiden Loya

Going out for dinner to a nice restaurant is a nice luxury many of us can afford. However, many people who don’t have the luxury are forced to resort to either making their own food. In a study done by Forbes, “it is almost five times more expensive to order from a restaurant than it is to cook at home. And if you’re using a meal kit service as a shortcut to a home-cooked meal, it’s a bit more affordable, but still almost three times as expensive as cooking from scratch.” Therefore it can be concluded that if given the chance a consumer should limit their dining expenses by trying to make their own meals at home to cut costs.

However, some consumers don’t have the option to dine out nor cook their own food, which becomes a major challenge for ensuring the health of a community; these communities are called “food deserts”. A food desert is defined as an area where residents aren’t able to access cheap and healthy food and are forced to eat unhealthy fast-food or even skip meals due.

Food deserts and income are heavily tied together. Areas with dense poverty most likely are also food deserts. According to a study done by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), “23.5 million people live in low-income areas that are further than 1 mile from a large grocery store or supermarket, and that 11.5 million of these people have low incomes themselves.” Furthermore, these places also have a high chance of not being able to access public transportation, healthcare, or parks, and other recreational health services.

In Milwaukee alone, 9% of the population lives in food deserts. These food deserts also typically overlapped with heavily segregated areas in Milwaukee. This continues the point that mainly poor ethnic areas are plagued by food deserts. There have been many continued efforts to try and help lift these areas away from being food scarce. Hunger Task Force is one organization that has set up pantries throughout Milwaukee County to help food deserts. The Victory Garden Initiative has also been another influential local organization that tries to incentivize people to eat healthily “[It] hosts the nation’s largest garden-building event, their Garden Blitz… It also has run a farm stand in the Harambee neighborhood that operates on a pay-what-you-can model to give everyone a chance to have fresh produce.” According to the Journal Sentinel. The “pay what you can” model helps bring up demand for these products by having the consumer not having to worry about price, and allows more healthy foods into these low-income areas. 

(As seen from the pictures above there’s a heavy correlation between what areas of Milwaukee are food deserts and the segregated areas of Milwaukee.)

And for the broader United States, Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move Campaign increased the presence of healthy foods in schools by changing meals and also creating an education plan. The Obama administration also approved a 400 Million dollar plan to create at least 80 more stores in food deserts according to Reuters. While there were some aspects to the campaign that could have been handled better such as a decrease in children’s consumption of the food, the campaign raised awareness on a topic many comfortable Americans haven’t had to think about. Sadly, food deserts will most likely make a return after a year of heavy lay-offs for many people, moving back a lot of the work done to improve these places.

Works Cited:

Baer, Drake. “Milwaukee Shows What Segregation Does to American Cities.” The Cut, 17 Aug. 2016, www.thecut.com/2016/08/milwaukee-shows-what-segregation-does-to-american-cities.html.

Dutko, Paula, et al. “Characteristics and Influential Factors of Food Deserts.” United States Department of Agriculture, Aug. 2012, www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/45014/30940_err140.pdf.

Guidice, Rachel. “Why Have Michelle Obama’s Healthy School Meals Been Junked?” Newsweek, 8 May 2017, www.newsweek.com/why-have-michelle-obamas-healthy-school-meals-been-junked-592938.

Hurdle, Jon. “U.S. Launches Program to End ‘Food Deserts.’” U.S., 19 Feb. 2010, www.reuters.com/article/us-food-health-program/u-s-launches-program-to-end-food-deserts-idUSTRE61I5E820100219.

McKnight, Patricia Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Milwaukee Has a Problem with Food Insecurity. Urban Agriculture Can Be Part of the Answer.” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 13 July 2020, eu.jsonline.com/story/news/solutions/2020/07/13/urban-farming-one-answer-milwaukees-food-insecurity/5388888002.

Priceonomics. “Here’s How Much Money You Save By Cooking At Home.” Forbes, 10 July 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/priceonomics/2018/07/10/heres-how-much-money-do-you-save-by-cooking-at-home/?sh=1ec9169c35e5.

Are Ivy League Schools Worth it?

Corinne Loth 

In a time of college applications and decisions, finances and student debt are likely at the forefront of high school seniors’ minds. And for those applying to multiple universities of differing costs and calibers, it’s important to review both the benefits and opportunity costs of attending an expensive institution, specifically an Ivy League school (listed below). There’s a continued debate about whether a degree is just a degree, or if it is indeed worth it to go to a more prestigious college in order to put yourself ahead of the competition when seeking a job. To measure this phenomenon, it’s necessary to look at annual tuition and fee rates at public, private, and Ivy League colleges, starting and projected incomes of graduates, and additional non-monetary factors.

It is commonly known that tuition prices for these Ivy League colleges are greatly increased compared to that of public and private universities. There are also multiple fees associated, including books and supplies, room and board, and additional living expenses. A 2016 calculation by Investopedia accounted for the average annual 8% inflation rate of college tuition and reported that for 2019, the average estimated cost of tuition and fees for one year of undergraduate education at a public university would amount to $30,310. An undergraduate Ivy League student would instead pay approximately $79,362 in tuition and fees for one year--a $49,052 difference. Though this inflation rate is not set and does fluctuate, the difference is startling nonetheless. These exclusive Ivy League schools defend their higher tuition and fee rates by arguing that additional opportunities are available to their students such as a greater network for internships and jobs, name recognition, research programs, etc. Yet, public university UW-Madison also hosts renowned research projects (ranked 8th in the nation for the volume of research), and over 825 student organizations, similar to the statistics of other public colleges. 

Furthermore, a 2015 review by payscale.com used the annual wage growth rate of 6.33% (reported by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis) to determine the starting salaries for graduate students. The estimated average starting salary for a 2019 public university graduate was $79,927. An Ivy League graduate could expect to make a starting salary of $85,676 respectively--a $5,749 difference. Inflated at the same rate, in 2029 Ivy League graduates can expect to make $10,622 more yearly than public university graduates, with private university graduates making even less. Despite this salary increase, it’s important to note that student loan debt interest rates are also affected by inflation, causing debts to be harder to pay off. According to the graph below by Money Crashers LLC, both Ivy League and private college graduates are expected to end up underwater, causing them to default on their student loans, and requiring more sacrifices to eliminate these debts. Ivy League colleges argue that the decreased acceptance rates and attendance leads to a lower supply of these graduates, but their excellence leads to a higher demand for these individuals, a type of scarcity that creates the ideal combination for occupational success. However, though the demand for labor is inelastic, the demand for Ivy League alumni workers is elastic because there is no definite measure of any improved work ethic or productivity of these graduates compared to those from public or private universities. 

Ivy League schools are known for distinct merit and for nurturing the brightest minds both in and out of the classroom. These universities can give students a network of accomplished individuals as well as opportunities that curate success. Yet, college is not a public good, and thus there are marginal costs to consider. Compared to public and private institutions, Ivy League colleges have heavily increased tuition and fee prices, with only slightly increased starting and projected salaries. Though seniors should select a college based on what feels right to them and fits their personal criteria, it is clear that the investment of an Ivy League education is not returned financially. Furthermore, public and private universities still equip students with extracurricular experience, a network of graduates, and job opportunities with incomes to sustain an appropriate standard of living. Thus, a trade-off should be made by students to favor colleges outside of the Ivy League. 

Works Cited

Brownlee, Adam P., “Is an Ivy League Degree Worthwhile?” Investopedia, 29 May 2019, https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/112815/ivy-league-degree-worth-it.asp.

Kennedy, Quinn, “Ivy Leagues are Overrated,” Buffalo Academy of the Sacred Heart, 20 April 2019, https://shatorch.com/1572/editorials/ivy-leagues-are-overrated/.

Schrage, Andrew, “College Admissions Scandal Revisited,” Money Crashers, May 2019, https://www.moneycrashers.com/ivy-league-college-education-worth-cost/.

Shemmassian, Shirag, “Is Attending an Ivy League Worth It? The Real Benefits of an Ivy League Education” Shemmassian Academic Consulting, 30 March 2020, https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/is-ivy-league-worth-it.

Is Another Stimulus Check Worth it? Probably Not. Here's Why

 Is Another Stimulus Check Worth It?

Probably not. Here’s why.

Luke Tackett

Everybody knows what happened in March of this year, so I doubt it bears repeating, but here’s what happened: The COVID-19 pandemic encompassed the entire globe and devastated millions of people from all races, backgrounds, and social class, resulting in an economic decline not seen in decades. Over 50% of Americans even argue that this recession is worse than the one in 2008, according to a survey by Edelman Financial Engines (cnbc.com). Businesses were left to suffer as a result of the mass quarantining, and many people lost their jobs, raising the unemployment rate in the U.S. to a whopping 14.9%.

As a result, the U.S. government decided to pass a stimulus check in order to assist those in need. For those who don’t know, a stimulus check is a grant of money given by the government to aid people who they deem fit, generally due to a recession, depression, or overall economic decline. The stimulus package that the government sent on March 27th of this year was part of the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security). It prioritized unemployed people but was also sent to many American families and small business owners. Each adult in a family received up to $1,200 depending on income and employment status, as well as $500 additional for each child under 17 years old (accounting.com).

This stimulus check cost the government around $300 billion dollars, and the total money spent on the CARES Act adds up to a whopping $2,200,000,000,000 (2.2 trillion) dollars. Keep in mind that although this act was praised and agreed upon by many politicians, every decision has a trade-off. In this case, there is a huge trade-off, due to the immense scope of the proposal. Yes, some families all across America have benefited greatly from this “free money,” but as we know, there is no such thing as free money. This money is coming directly from the government, which means only one thing: the national debt increases yet again. According to Rob Berger, an advisor contributor on Forbes, the U.S. spent a total of over $6.5 trillion dollars in the last fiscal year (ending September 30th), a third of that coming from the CARES Act alone. Looking at the chart below (provided by Visualcapitalist.com), it’s easy to see the immense impact that this expenditure had on the debt. Compared to 2019, the debt increased by approximately 25%.

What’s even worse is that the money spent on the CARES Act doesn’t contribute to the GDP because stimulus checks are a transfer payment, and no goods or services are being produced in the process. This means the GDP drops while the debt increases, which is a horrible outcome, and right now it is the worst debt-to-GDP ratio the U.S. has ever seen. Due to this, many Americans worry if receiving these stimulus checks is really worth it.

Congressional leaders are planning to release another round of stimulus checks that are part of a relief package worth $900 billion. Supposedly, the agreement should be completed by the end of this week (12/19/20) according to The Washington Post. It will aim to help small businesses and unemployed Americans, similar to the last one. People will receive $600-$700 dollars if they lie below a certain income threshold.

Many people complain that the money from the first stimulus check was not enough to support them for any significant length of time, so considering this check will give half that amount of money, it’s not likely that this will make much of a difference. One reader on Marketwatch.com says, “As a married person with 5 kids and a mother that lives with us, I think $150,000 is too low. Kids are expensive and they eat a lot, not to mention medical and dental bills, especially now that school is out.” People are also upset that their cost of living does not play a part in the amount of money they receive, since different states have vastly different economies. On top of that, but there are still lots of undocumented workers who are not eligible to receive these benefits because they’re immigrants and not U.S. citizens.

In the end, the CARES packages may have helped some American families, but not enough are truly satisfied with its results. Throwing money at people isn’t going to help eliminate poverty because it’s not being received by the right people, or the people who are receiving it aren’t benefiting to any significant degree. The trade-off of having the national debt increase by trillions of dollars isn’t worth it. If the government continues to spend this much money on things like the CARES packages, the likeliness that this already unpayable debt will get paid off will only decrease.

Works Cited

Berger, Rob. “5 Breathtaking Numbers Reveal The Unsettling Cost Of Stimulus.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 18 Oct. 2020, www.forbes.com/sites/robertberger/2020/10/18/5-big-numbers-reveal-the-unsettling-scope-of-stimulus-spending/?sh=57c612e142b7. 

Bernard, Tara Siegel, and Ron Lieber. “F.A.Q. on Stimulus Checks, Unemployment and the Coronavirus Plan.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 26 Mar. 2020, www.nytimes.com/article/coronavirus-stimulus-package-questions-answers.html. 

“Coronavirus Stimulus Package of 2020.” Accounting.com, 18 Sept. 2020, www.accounting.com/resources/stimulus-package-2020/. 

Jeff Stein, Mike DeBonis. “Congressional Leaders Add Stimulus Checks to $900 Billion Relief Package as They near Deal.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 16 Dec. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2020/12/16/congress-stimulus-checks-relief/. 

Lu, Marcus. “Charting America's Debt: $27 Trillion and Counting.” Visual Capitalist, 30 Oct. 2020, www.visualcapitalist.com/americas-debt-27-trillion-and-counting/. 

MFoxCNBC. “The Covid Pandemic Is Worse than 2008 Crisis for a Majority of Americans, Study Says.” CNBC, CNBC, 1 Dec. 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/11/10/pandemic-worse-than-2008-for-a-majority-of-americans-study-says.html. 

“U.S. Department of the Treasury.” The CARES Act Provides Assistance to Workers and Their Families | U.S. Department of the Treasury, 14 Dec. 2020, home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/cares/assistance-for-american-workers-and-families.

The Airline Industry Affected by Coronavirus

 The Airline Industry affected by Rona:

By: Tanner Moroder 

The pandemic has affected a lot of people, places, and businesses throughout the last year, but one in particular are the airlines. As you may know ever since the pandemic hit, the amount of flights and global travel have gone down tremendously. Due to our circumstances in the world today, people feel less safe to hop on a flight and go on vacation. With that being said, the airline industry hasn't been doing as well but has been figuring out ways to still attract business.  

During March of 2020 was when the initial downward trend of commercial flights started happening. This is very understandable because people wanted to stay at home and quarantine to limit their chances of getting the virus. With more and more people quarantining and the government coming out with a stay at home order it is very difficult for the airlines to attract people to purchase flights. Another reason for the lack of commercial flights is due to the transition of in-person work to online work. With everything online and having the luxury of doing work in your basement there is no need to meet in person. According to CNBC.com, the global pandemic cut around 70,000 commercial flights from March 11 to the end of April. From this visual, it is easy to see that the demand for travel and flights has gone down significantly during the pandemic. At the time it was seen as too big of a risk. 

As well as commercial flights being cut, airline companies decided to substantially decrease prices to attract people to fly. This in hope would attract people to go more vacations for very cheap and the airlines could be making small gains. For example, according to expedia.com, a normal flight to Vegas from Milwaukee ranged anywhere from 120$ to 407$. During March of 2020 that same flight cost around 27$. With the demand for flights being so low it only makes sense for airlines to drop the prices to attract more customers to fly. Well this idea worked and the prices reached an all time low and then airlines were getting more and more people wanting to fly again. Ever since the prices dropped to an all time low the demand for lights went up because of how cheap they were. Now prices for flights have been on a steady incline, but are still below market equilibrium because of the pandemic. 

All in all, the airline industry has had a lot of problems throughout the pandemic, but have figured out ways to get through them quickly and efficiently using consumer demand in their favor. Although the industry couldn’t always go up and boom they took a short time of losses to gain the demand of flights back and in turn has elevated the business. So when is your next flight?

Works Cited

“$19 - Cheap Flights to Las Vegas NV in 2021: Expedia.” Expedia.com, www.expedia.com/Cheap-Flights-To-Las-Vegas.d178276.Travel-Guide-Flights.

Diego, Anton, and Name *. “Flight Prices 2020 - Airline Flight Prices.” EveryMundo, 16 June 2020, www.everymundo.com/2020-flight-price-trends/.

YenNee_Lee. “5 Charts Show Which Travel Sectors Were Worst Hit by the Coronavirus.” CNBC, CNBC, 6 May 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/05/06/coronavirus-pandemics-impact-on-travel-tourism-in-5-charts.html.

How Netflix Dominated the TV Market

 How Netflix Dominated the TV Market

Joe Rittmeyer

In the upcoming December, the weather is getting chillier, and winter break is almost here. What better time than to binge-watch some Netflix. Especially in the past few months, Netflix and other streaming platforms have become increasingly popular, nearly dominating TV and revolutionizing the way we watch. With more and more shows coming out, they have all been easily accessible via streaming. There is no need to wait for downloads, or for the Blueray to come out. With a simple click of a button, viewers can access a plethora of newly released TV shows or movies all for the low cost of $14 a month. Why wouldn’t we subscribe to Netflix? 

Netflix as an oligopoly has dominated the market because of the increasing consumer demand, consumer preference, and price increases. 

Streaming is just better than regular cable or satellite. With on-demand videos and access to a profusion of TV shows and movies, streaming has been deemed better among the younger and even older generations. Streaming has even created an entire subculture of binge-watching on the internet and has revolutionized how people review and discuss TV. Normal TV cannot compete with these services. Only 33% of people have reported using cable or satellite and stream on a regular basis. Throughout 2020 especially, the demand for streaming services has skyrocketed. Online streaming has dominated the TV market, with nearly 55% of American households subscribed to streaming platforms. Within 3 months of quarantine, Netflix has gained 10 million new subscribers. For comparison, Netflix gained 28 million new subscribers in the entire year of 2019. Adults spent an average of 6 and a half hours a day watching TV online. Netflix is even the most popular streaming service in the world by a marginal amount. 

Streaming services such as Hulu, include a subscription-based fee and individual fees for movies and TV shows. Services like Disney+ rely on exclusive content for subscribers. However, Netflix does not include ads, ad-based tier subscriptions, or heavily relies on exclusive content. Instead, Netflix heavily relies on its large popularity and loyal subscribers, yet it makes the most money ($20.5 billion in 2019). The fact is, Netflix is a shining example of how an oligopoly operates. Netflix was the first streaming service that made a variety of TV shows and movies available, next to Amazon Prime, who’s service was limited at the time, popularizing Netflix as the “grandfather of TV streaming.” If you’re interested in the history of streaming platforms, check out the History of Media Streaming. With Netflix’s availability on almost any media platform (TV, PC, gaming consoles) the company gained rapid popularity and reputation throughout the U.S. and would continue to grow internationally. Even with competing companies like Hulu, Amazon, or Disney, Netflix still holds consumer preference, as they’ve built their reputation as the first and best streaming platform. Consumers were first exposed to online streaming via Netflix and will continue, even if other streaming platforms might offer better prices. It is little things like skip buttons, or recommendation feeds that make Netflix more convenient than their competitors. Furthermore, they have gained loyal subscribers through no ads and consistent subscription fees. As like an oligopoly, Netflix holds the licenses to exclusive shows that can only be streamed on Netflix. With Netflix’s domination of the market, they can influence what people watch. The same could be said for all streaming services. 

As king of the streaming platforms, Netflix has a very high influence on price control. In fact just last October, Netflix planned on raising monthly subscription prices by $1 and premium subscriptions by $2. Price increases have occurred in the past by increasing the monthly subscription fees by a little every year, Netflix can confidently keep increasing prices, without backlash from subscribers due to the very nature of subscription-based services. As Netflix gains more subscribers, they will raise prices because subscribers will tend to stay subscribed, without noticing price increases. This is also why Netflix and other streaming platforms offer free trials, as users who get a free subscription are more likely to stay subscribed than to pay up-front.  

Overall, online streaming was bound to become the future of TV and it is only natural that streaming services would compete and operate as an oligopoly. Netflix was the first and most successful streaming platform that would spark a new age of TV. How many of you are currently subscribed to Netflix now or other streaming services? Would you ever change your way of watching TV or has online streaming already reached modern perfection? 

Work Cited

Amol, Rajan. “TV Watching and Online Streaming Surge during Lockdown.” BBC News, BBC, 5 Aug. 2020, www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-53637305. 

Sams, George. “The Reasons Behind Netflix's Success.” FilmInk, FilmInk, 11 Feb. 2019, www.filmink.com.au/reasons-behind-netflixs-success/. 

Sherman, Alex. “Expect Netflix to Keep Raising Prices.” CNBC, CNBC, 2 Nov. 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/10/31/why-netflix-will-keep-raising-prices-with-confidence.html. 

Steve, Liesman. “Nearly 60% of Americans Are Streaming and Most with Netflix: CNBC Survey.” CNBC, CNBC, 29 Mar. 2018, www.cnbc.com/2018/03/29/nearly-60-percent-of-americans-are-streaming-and-most-with-netflix-cnbc-survey.html. 

Watson, Amy. “Netflix - Quarterly Revenue 2011-2020.” Statista, Statistica, 21 Oct. 2020, www.statista.com/statistics/273883/netflixs-quarterly-revenue/. 

Zambell, Alex. “A History of Media Streaming and the Future of Connected TV.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 1 Mar. 2013, www.theguardian.com/media-network/media-network-blog/2013/mar/01/history-streaming-future-connected-tv. 

Credit cards? Should you get them and what do you need to know before you do?

 Credit cards? Should you get them and what do you need to know before you do?

Written by: Alex D. 

To put it simply, yes, you should have a credit card at some point in your life, but when? 

The right age.

Most sources say that between the ages of 18-21 is the right time, however some give a range and others say right at 18, the reasoning is because of credit score, and the way you build your credit score. If you start at a younger age, you can start you build up your credit score, which is vital for purchases like a vehicle or a loan for your house, which are very important things that you wouldn't want to have denied from you, and starting young can help you make your credit score better earlier in life, but could also make it worse if you aren't careful.

What you need to know about credit cards before you start using one.

First of all, you need to understand that a credit card isn't free money, which sounds like common sense, however some people don’t realize this and can end up in a ton of debt because they just see it as being able to buy anything they want. The issue with this beyond the debt is that credit card debt counts for 30% of your credit score, which as previously stated is very important if you want to buy things like cars. So what do i mean by it not being free money, all the money you spent with a credit card needs to be paid back after a certain amount of time, and if you don’t pay it back then your in debt, its simple but for some people who may not understand that or for those with horrible spending habits (most likely never got taught about budgeting) it can be a serious issue, but if you understand that and can get past that credit cards are very useful and you should have at least one.

How should you effectively use a credit card?

According to Business Insider “The important thing is to use your credit card as if it were a debit card” I believe this statement is very accurate, if you wouldn’t normally have the money to buy it (unless of course you're just wanting to buy it earlier because maybe you’ll have the money soon and want to get whatever item your buying sooner rather than later.) then don’t buy the item, otherwise when the time comes to pay back what you spent you wouldn't be able to pay it back, which leads to debt, and as previously stated credit card debt can be very harmful to your future. 

Conclusion.

Overall, you should get a credit card when you're young, but you just need to be aware of the danger of using a credit card wrong, and the simple tip of using it more like a debit card instead of seeing it as free money should be enough to not get in debt. As far as building up a credit score goes, just buy things, things you can afford of course but just using a credit card should help your score, which is the importance behind starting so young, much like retiring and saving money, the sooner you start the more you’ll have later in life.

 

Slotnick, David E. “4 Reasons Why You Should Use a Credit Card Instead of a Debit Card.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 13 Dec. 2019, www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/reasons-to-use-credit-cards-vs-debit-cards. 

Irby, LaToya. “How Too Much Debt Could Be Affecting Your Credit Score.” The Balance, 29 Oct. 2020, www.thebalance.com/how-your-debt-affects-your-credit-score-960489. 

DeMatteo, Megan. “Why It's Important to Open a Credit Card at Age 18.” CNBC, CNBC, 25 Nov. 2020, www.cnbc.com/select/whats-the-best-age-for-first-credit-card/. 

The Shrinking of the Middle Class

 The Shrinking of the Middle Class

By: Carter Wolf

The shrinking middle class is a phrase that is thrown around constantly, whether in professional articles in newspapers and magazines, or at the dinner table with your fun uncle jeffrey. It’s said with hush tones and scared faces, almost like talking about satin or the end of the world, however what does the shrinking of the middle class actually mean.

First, we must define the middle class. The middle class is not a set thing, as it changes from place to place. States with higher average income will have a higher income definition of the middle class, however other places like Mexico might have a lower middle class definition. Second, we must understand that the middle class isn’t shrinking everywhere, as according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), places like Ireland and France actually have had an increase in the middle class, increasing by 3.9% and 3.2% respectively. Other places however, such as Sweden and Germany, have had large decreases of the middle class, 7.4% and 5% respectively. 

In the US, the middle class has shrunk quite significantly, about 12% since 1970 according to the Pew Research Center, and this led to a larger increase in upper class than lower class citizens. You might think that this is good, this means that there are more rich people in the US, and we are less poor. Technically yes, however class inequality isn’t very good. Even though there is a higher population of richer people, which can be seen as good, then lower services for middle class people aren’t as prominent. Very similar to the gilded age of the late 1800s in America, there was a huge class divide between rich and poor, so the rich had all of the power, and everyone only cared about the upper class, forgetting about the lower class and much less prominent middle class.

 Class equality is very important for society to include all members of life, and the shrinking of the middle class can be bad, but also the growth of the middle class at the expense of shrinking of the upper class can be as bad as the other way around. 

Works Cited

“America's Shrinking Middle Class: A Close Look at Changes Within Metropolitan Areas.” Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends Project, Pew Charitable Trusts, 30 May 2020, www.pewsocialtrends.org/2016/05/11/americas-shrinking-middle-class-a-close-look-at-changes-within-metropolitan-areas/.

Frankenfield, Jake. “Which Income Class Are You?” Investopedia, IAC, 14 Sept. 2020, www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0912/which-income-class-are-you.aspx.

Reeves, Richard V. “The Condition of the Middle Class Matters More than Its Size.” Brookings, Brookings, 15 Apr. 2019, www.brookings.edu/opinions/the-condition-of-the-middle-class-matters-more-than-its-size/.

OECD (2019), Under Pressure: The Squeezed Middle Class, OECD Publishing, Paris. https://doi.org/10.1787/689afed1-en

Postal Banking: Why it should be brought (back) to America

 Postal Banking: Why it should be brought (back) to America

Evan Coursin

Underbanking is a major problem in the US. According to the 2019 FDIC survey of Household Use of Banking and Financial Services, 5.4% of Americans are unbanked. That is, they have no affiliation with any formal bank. No savings account, no checking account, nothing. 5.4% may not sound like a lot, but that is still over 7 million people.

Unbanked rates in the country have been declining over the years, but with millions of people still without access to financial services, the concern for helping them is still high.

Many of these people are not unbanked by choice. Almost half of all unbanked people cited not having enough money to open an account as a reason for being unbanked (Kutzbach, et al.). 

After not having enough money, the most popular reason for people to be unbanked is distrust in traditional banks. And with their seemingly endless number of fees, who could blame them?

Another reason for being unbanked though is that a bank’s location is too inconvenient for some people. Banks have been leaving poor and rural areas in droves, leaving millions of people without access to banking services. But one thing that hasn’t been leaving: the post office. The post office is the great equalizer institution of the US (Solomon, et al.), serving every American no matter where they live. Bei in in the poorest precinct in Chicago or the town in Nebraska with a population of 1, the USPS will deliver mail there.

This fact presents an opportunity. If the USPS was to start offering basic financial services, savings accounts, check deposits, and so forth, it would accomplish two things: 1. Those people without close access to a bank could go to the local post office for their financial needs instead, and 2. The post office would receive another source of revenue that it desperately needs. The USPS has been underfunded by the government for a long time, but that’s a story for another time. Anyway, offering safe and secure financial services to un- and underbanked people could do one major thing: lift them out of poverty. If you’ve taken a class with Mr. Douglass, you’ll know that “the most difficult thing about being poor is that you don’t have any money.” And these people are poor: nearly a third of all people who make less than $30,000 a year are unbanked (Kutzbach, et al.). But being able to cash a check without a 5% fee on that check could go a long way to giving poor people the money they need. Actually, no. Not the money they need, the money they rightfully earned.

But here’s the biggest reason why postal banking should be implemented: it once was. From 1910 to 1966, the USPS offered the basic financial services that so many needed, but couldn’t always get with traditional banks. Granted, because the FDIC didn’t exist until 1933, traditional banks were a lot more susceptible to runs on the bank and people losing all of their savings. But for the start of it, the portal banking service was backed by the US government, which people had quite a bit of confidence in. The services only ended in 1966 because banks had become more secure and could offer more competitive rates than the post office. But the winds of capitalism have been pushing for a reintroduction of postal banking.

Banks are, at their heart, businesses. They exist to make money. And because poor people don’t have the money banks want to use to make more money, they’ve been leaving. But the government? The government is (hopefully) for the people. The first three words of the Constitution aren’t “We the people” for show. And as it is for the people, the government should form programs that help them. Postal banking is just one way that can be achieved.  

Bibliography

Baradaran, Mahrsa. "A Short History of Postal Banking." Slate, Graham Holdings, 19 Aug. 2014, slate.com/news-and-politics/2014/08/postal-banking-already-worked-in-the-usa-and-it-will-work-again.html.

Kutzbach, Mark, et al. How America Banks: Household Use of Banking and Financial Services. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 2019,

Rowan, Lisa. "Would Postal Banking Save the Post Office?" Forbes, 2 Sept. 2020, www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/would-postal-banking-save-the-post-office/#:~:text=The%20United%20States%20Postal%20Service,government%2C%20USPS%20banking%20was%20abolished.

Solomon, Danyelle, et al. "Creating a Postal Banking System Would Help Address Structural Inequality." Center for American Progress, 10 Oct. 2020, www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2020/10/15/491495/creating-postal-banking-system-help-address-structural-inequality/#fnref-491495-12.

How E-Commerce is Taking over the Retail industry

 How E-commerce is Taking Over the Retail Industry

Julia Beck

Black Friday, the largest shopping event of the year, marks the start of the holiday season, and one of the most profitable days for retailers. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused drastic losses in sales for large and small companies alike, which placed extra weight on the success of Black Friday 2020 to breathe life back into these companies. One way that businesses are adjusting to the pandemic’s effects is by taking a stronger online presence for consumers to do their shopping from the comfort of their living rooms. E-commerce has been a steadily growing industry for the last several years, however, its importance and convenience has been emphasized by the last 9 months, and it’s growth will not be slowing down anytime soon. 

To recognize the impact of online retail this holiday season, we have to look at the numbers over the years. In 2002, U.S. shoppers spent a total of $416.4 billion on holiday shopping between the days of Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. By 2019, that number was up 75%, to $730.2 billion (The Balance). As mentioned earlier, thanks to the pandemic, online shopping rose to a record high this year, with consumers spending $9.0 billion online this Black Friday. This was a 21.6% increase since last year, which boasted a total of $7.4 billion, according to Adobe Analytics data (CNBC news). Adobe Analytics further outlined the spending habits and found that consumers spent $6.3 million per minute online, and that shopping off of cell phones rose 25.3% this year, reaching $3.6 billion and representing 40% of total e-commerce spending (CNBC). The availability of technology and online business platforms has paved the way for an unprecedented amount of online spending, and companies are continuing to build and perfect their online presence to increase their sales. 

The success of current online shopping platforms can be credited to the increase in online services provided by stores even when their brick and mortar locations were closed. People were able to have their groceries delivered to their cars, receive their online orders within days, and take advantage of many free shipping opportunities. These experiences drove home the idea that e-commerce is simply easier for most consumers. Despite the fact that most storefronts opened back up again, the trend of online shopping isn’t going anywhere. A new survey from PYMNTS found that nearly 36% of U.S. consumers are now buying retail goods online, compared to 29% doing so in mid-April, during the shut down. The increase is also consistent with consumers ordering from restaurants online, even though most restaurants have reopened with socially distanced dining accommodations (Forbes). Online retail is continuing to grow, regardless of how the pandemic is slowing passing. 

To show the global reach of e-commerce, look at the image below and recognize the growth in e-commerce sales throughout the world over the last six years and the projected growth over the next three. 

The image above represents the facts that ecommerce is not just growing in the United States, but in the rest of the world as well. Online shopping is one of the most popular online activities around the world, and with technology development rapidly growing, it is no surprise that the online retail market is predicted to grow substantially over the next few years.

Works Cited

Amadeo, Kimberly. “What Is Black Friday?” The Balance, 31 July 2020, www.thebalance.com/what-is-black-friday-3305710.

Brophy, Meaghan. “31 Online Shopping Statistics You Should Know for 2020.” Fit Small Business, Fit Small Business, 30 Sept. 2020, fitsmallbusiness.com/online-shopping-statistics/.

Corkery, Michael. “Black Friday Live Updates: Holiday Shopping in a Pandemic.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Nov. 2020, www.nytimes.com/live/2020/11/27/business/us-economy-coronavirus.

Lauren Thomas. “Black Friday 2020 Online Shopping Surges 22% to Record $9 Billion, Adobe Says.” CNBC, CNBC, 28 Nov. 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/11/28/black-friday-2020-online-shopping-surges-22percent-to-record-9-billion-adobe-says.html.

Maheshwari, Sapna, and Michael Corkery. “'Bleak Friday' for Stores as Pandemic Pushes Holiday Shopping Online.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 30 Nov. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/11/30/business/black-friday-retail-sales.html.

Morgan, Blake. “More Customers Are Shopping Online Now Than At Height Of Pandemic, Fueling Need For Digital Transformation.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 27 July 2020, www.forbes.com/sites/blakemorgan/2020/07/27/more-customers-are-shopping-online-now-than-at-height-of-pandemic-fueling-need-for-digital-transformation/?sh=1f27b8b76bb9.

How do the Holidays Affect the Economy?

 How do the Holidays Affect the Economy?

Taylor Casey

Although there isn’t any snow in Wisconsin yet, it is no surprise that the upcoming holidays are on the minds of many people. This year, 87% of consumers are planning to celebrate the winter holidays. Even amidst all of the uncertainty that this year has brought, the holiday season provides an opportunity to join together with family, enjoy food, exchange gifts and continue traditions. Economically, the holiday season also greatly benefits the economy. No matter what holiday you are celebrating, there is still a need for lots of purchases to be made, which all benefit the US economy. 

From early November to Late November, there is an increase of 26% of people who start shopping for the holiday season. In early November, about 59% of consumers start holiday shopping. At the end of the month, 85% of consumers have started shopping for the holidays. One of those reasons might be due to Black Friday, which is a retail “holiday”, which marks the beginning of many consumer’s holiday shopping. The diagram below illustrates the average amount of shoppers and average spending that occurs on holiday items just on Thanksgiving weekend alone. This infographic put out by the National Retail Federation (NRF) shows that there is lots of holiday spending going on not just around the holidays, but especially on the last weekend of November. 

Along with Black Friday helping to jump start the holiday spending season, the overall holidays bring economic growth to the country. You can’t buy your Christmas dinner a month in advance, and you can’t buy last minute gifts after the holiday. This shows that the select time frame in which spending occurs is clearly defined. Consumer spending makes up 70% of gross domestic product, with most purchases taking place in November and December. Information from the NRF shows that, “Consumers plan to spend $998 on average on items such as gifts, food, decorations, and other holiday related purchases for themselves and their families.” This can also be seen in the chart below. The amount of money spent during the holiday season is able to help the economy. When people spend money in businesses, there is economic growth as well. When there is growth, there are higher living standards, higher incomes, and therefore they are able to put some of their money back into the economy. It is the cycle that essentially benefits many people. 

Currently, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of the US and its economy. Will the pandemic have an effect on holiday shopping and spending? In short, no. Looking at the projected spending for this holiday season, there is not a large decline in consumer spending this holiday season. Just like every other winter holiday season, consumers are spending just as much this year on gifts and other items like in years past. When purchasing non-gift items for themselves or others, consumers are a little more hesitant, however as seen in the tables below, there is not a large decline. An interesting fact that I learned while researching was the fact that around $25 Billion will be spent on gift cards alone this holiday season. All of these show how much the holiday season is able to help the economy of the United States. In the end, the holiday season and the habits of consumers have continued to help the economy of the United States year after year, and 2020 is no different. 

Works Cited

Claus, Damon. “Exactly How Important Is Holiday Shopping for the U.S. Economy?” CASTUS, CASTUS, 2 Dec. 2019, castusglobal.com/blog/exactly-how-important-is-holiday-shopping-for-the-us-economy.

Inman, Danielle. “Holiday Shoppers Take Advantage of Early, Thanksgiving Weekend Deals.” NRF, 1 Dec. 2020, nrf.com/insights/holiday-and-seasonal-trends/winter-holidays.

Light, Larry. “Why Holiday Shopping Is so Important for the U.S. Economy.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 28 Nov. 2016, www.cbsnews.com/news/why-holiday-shopping-is-so-important-for-the-economy/. 

How Amtrak has been affected by Covid-19

 How Amtrak has been affected by Covid-19

By: Joshua Gibbons

Covid-19 has affected a lot of businesses. Amtrak is no different. Amtrak unlike most businesses has never made a profit. Amtrak has ran off government funding since it was founded. Covid-19 has hurt amtrak quite a bit this year. 

Due to the pandemic trains have only 50% capacity which already limits customers on what trains they can take. This ultimately leads to less revenue for the company. Trains that run through the northeast corridor are still making a profit despite the reduction in capacity. Amtrak has always had good ridership numbers on the northeast corridor especially Washington D.C and New York as well as Boston. The rest of their Routes for the most part are at a loss. Long-distance routes have always been a loss but the Hiawatha route which is usually profitable is now making a loss. 

In 2019 Amtrak was predicted to turn a profit for the first time in company history in 2020. Which hasn’t happened. In April they lost $677.3 million. This is also around the time where they needed a bailout from the government in order to keep operating and to help the smaller communities to get basic transportation to bigger cities. 

From October 2019 to October 2020 they lost a total of $801.1 million. Most of that loss came from this year as fewer people are traveling. This isn't good for Amtrak as they have yet to make a profit in their 49-year existence. Amtrak is already expecting that next year will not be much better because people will be more skeptical about traveling. Also, there would be still Covid-19 effects from this year going into 2021.  

Amtrak has been affected by Covid-19 just like a lot of other businesses. They have continued to feel the lack of ridership which is starting to take a toll on their business. 

Works Cited

“Amtrak Releases FY 2020 Data.” Railway Age, 24 Nov. 2020, www.railwayage.com/passenger/high-performance/amtrak-releases-fy-2020-data/. 

Dong, Chris. “What Is It like to Take Amtrak during the Pandemic?” The Points Guy, The Points Guy, 16 Aug. 2020, thepointsguy.com/news/amtrak-coronavirus-experience/. 

Hobson, Jeremy, and Allison Hagan. “Amtrak Could Turn A Profit In 2020 For The 1st Time Ever.” Amtrak Could Turn A Profit In 2020 For The 1st Time Ever | Here & Now, WBUR, 15 Nov. 2019, www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2019/11/15/amtrak-profit-train-ceo-richard-anderson. 

The Systemic Failure that is Student Loans

 The systemic failure that is student loans

Cole Hicks 

As we near the beginning of 2021, we are approaching a deadline for high school seniors to choose where they will spend the next couple years of their lives. While weighing out all of the options and attempting to make a decision, students are realizing just how daunting student debt can be, but what else are these younger generations going to have to adapt to and what, or who, is to blame?

In the past 20 years, there has been an increase in nearly 5.1 million freshmen students a year.  College is more encouraged than ever before because without it, a person is considered to be unsuccessful in today’s society. However, are accommodations being made for an ever growing college population? Despite the necessity, not really. First, student debt is a prevalent topic, both for people in and out of school and within the U.S. government. As pictured in the chart at right, student debt is the fastest growing form of debt in America, with a rough 100% difference between it and the subsequent. What are the reasons for this dramatic increase? Experts are saying that an increase in demand for a college education has “made a degree less advantageous”, meaning students are no longer set for the rest of their lives with only a bachelor’s degree. 

Another potential reason behind this increase is the consistent increase in the American inflation rate. Generally, the average inflation rate trends upwards, with the most drastic increases in the 1960s and 1990s. Despite these increases being decades ago, we are now seeing the full impacts of inflation with other additional impacts stacked on top. Another issue is minimum wage. While the cost of college has consistently risen in the past 10 years (see salary VS university chart), minimum wage has not, which impedes a graduate from being able to pay off student loans in a timely manner. Therefore, students become more dependent on government subsidized loans, and some economists theorize that this dependency contributes to the increase. If the government is going to provide money to the average student, universities attempt to price gouge to get more money, seeing if the government will eventually pay even more to the universities. 

As we continue to see an increase in student loan debt, we are constantly reminded of the market failure that is government subsidized loans. Not only is subsidized loans a  service that is not necessarily distributed fairly to those that need them most, but there are very significant flaws in this system.  The system was not created in an effective way, nor should universities be allowed to price gouge the way they are. An effective solution would be a price ceiling on the cost of college and a better government system that provides fairer loans and rates. We have only seen an increase in the number of students applying to college, but the more the student loans cause economic disadvantages that affect a person for decades, we may see a decrease. We can’t afford a negative externality such as this. With a lesser amount of college graduates that means a less progressive and complex nation which would be a systemic failure that would fall at the foot of Capitol Hill. 

Works Cited

Bloomberg.com, Bloomberg, www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-17/the-student-loan-debt-crisis-is-about-to-get-worse.

Hoffower, Hillary. “College Is More Expensive than It's Ever Been, and the 5 Reasons Why Suggest It's Only Going to Get Worse.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 26 June 2019, www.businessinsider.com/why-is-college-so-expensive-2018-4.

Rahim, Zamira. “Why Gen Z Will Be Hit the Hardest by the Financial Fallout from Coronavirus.” CNN, Cable News Network, 13 May 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/05/13/business/coronavirus-generation-z-jobs-intl-gbr/index.html.

“Student Loan Debt Grows 5x Faster than Wages.” Life Benefits, 21 Jan. 2020, www.life-benefits.com/growth-of-student-loan-debt-5-times-faster-than-wages-over-past-decade/.

Why Don't People Budget and What are Specific Ways to Create a Good Budget?

 Why Don't People Budget and What are Specific Ways to Create a Good Budget? 

Written by: CJ Sherman 

A budget is something that we all know about but isn’t something that everyone has, even though you should. According to simpletuition.com, the goal of a budget is “To compare the amount of money coming in with the amount going out, allowing consumers to make smarter choices about their finances.” It means to be able to be smart with your money. But, simpletuition.com also states that only 32% of Americans have a budget, for one reason or another, but that number is way too small.A budget can be created for two main things: personal spending and big projects. You could also have multiple budgets for a multitude of reasons. But why don’t people create these budgets? Is it because people don’t earn enough money to make these budgets? Well yes, but that's only half of it. Many people tend to overspend and do not realize how much money they are spending. Debitconsolodation.com says that in 2016, the average consumer spending in America was $57.3K. Because of this extent of spending, 22% of Americans from age 18-34 have taken out loans from their retirement fund. People are taking out money from an account that is supposed to help them live an easy life when they are older. You don’t want to be working a hard job when you are 70 right? So you can see why this is just overall a bad idea. Everyone needs to have a good budget. 

But how do you create a budget? What is the best way to do so? Some many tips and tricks that help you create a good budget. You need to know about a few things including your net income, expenses, debt, and money put into savings per month. These are three things that you need to pay for before creating a budget. In a sense, a budget can be the leftover money after paying for all the things listed above. Other things that will help you determine a budget amount are tracking your spending, setting long term and short term goals, making a plan, adjusting habits, and checking in to make sure that you are still on your budget. (bettermoneyhabits.bankofamerica.com) 

Most people abide by a lot of these tips, but there is one that not a lot of people do: adjusting habits. For example, when driving to work, gas money may be a need, but a monthly subscription for a radio you listen to is a want. Like I stated earlier, people do not realize how much money they are spending. 65% of Americans do not realize how much money they have been spending each month. And ⅓ of Americans wish they had spent less money. Little things like the example I mentioned all add up together and you spend much more than you realize. Of course, you don’t have to adjust habits if it’s not necessary. But If you are living paycheck to paycheck, I would recommend canceling that radio subscription. 

People need a budget. A budget’s whole purpose is to allow you to be smart with your money. People aren’t budgeting and are paying the consequences for it. They realize how much little they have in savings, or are being forced to pull money out of savings or other important accounts. Some of you may already have a budget but know the importance of one and how to create a sustainable one. Be smart with your money. 

Works Cited

Better Money Habits. “Creating a Budget with a Personal Budget Spreadsheet.” Better Money Habits, Bank of America, 28 Sept. 2020, bettermoneyhabits.bankofamerica.com/en/saving-budgeting/creating-a-budget.

“Budgeting for College Students.” SimpleTuition, Lendingtree, www.simpletuition.com/managing-finances/budgeting/.

Carlson, Karen. “American Budgeting and Saving Behavior from FINRA's NFCS.” InCharge Debt Solutions, 31 July 2019, www.incharge.org/financial-literacy/data/american-budgeting-saving-behavior/.

Debt.com. “Fewer Americans Are Budgeting in 2019 -- Although They Think Everyone Else Should.” Cision, PR Newswire: News Distribution, Targeting and Monitoring, 4 Apr. 2019, www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fewer-americans-are-budgeting-in-2019----although-they-think-everyone-else-should-300824384.html.

Mint.com, /. “Survey: 65% of Americans Have No Idea How Much They Spent Last Month.” MintLife Blog, Intuit, 3 Aug. 2020, mint.intuit.com/blog/budgeting/spending-knowledge-survey/.

officialdc_com. “The Ultimate Guide to Budgeting.” DebtConsolidation, DebtConsolidation.com, 24 Jan. 2018, www.debtconsolidation.com/budgeting/. 

Associates vs. Bachelors: What you should know about college degrees

 Associates vs. Bachelors: What you should know about college degrees

Written by: Elizabeth Ehlert 

For the vast majority of high school upperclassmen, looking at colleges or planning to look at colleges has been/will be a very large part of their lives for the next year or two up until graduation. But these undergraduate options are not limited to a four-year college. There are quite a few differences between obtaining an associate’s degree vs a bachelor’s degree directly out of high school that graduates should consider when making plans for their career and life. 

First off, an associate’s degree can be completed in as little as two years as an undergraduate, but this doesn’t automatically make it the worse option, believe it or not! Depending on the job requirements, this degree can be more than enough to sustain a person comfortably for however long they wish to take advantage of it. Associates degrees are much cheaper than a bachelor's degree, and as they are primarily seen at a technical or community college, they are meant to help prepare a student for a specific career path, usually in science, math, medicine, or engineering. According to cnbc.com, who derived their results from polling the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for high-paying careers with associates’ degrees is over $60,000, many of which are in demand and would probably require more training in order to be completely successful, but you do not have to pay for two more years of college with a bachelor’s in order to land a job like a dental hygienist, a nuclear medicine technician, a radiologist, or even an air traffic controller. However, the average salary for all associate degree jobs is around $40,000, which is significantly less, but depending on your career and life goals this can be more than enough to sustain a person comfortably, as long as you are able to land the job itself. 

There are four different types of associate's degrees you can earn: AAA (Associate of Applied Arts) AAS (Associate of Applied Sciences) AA (Associate of Arts) and AS (Associate of Science). AAA and AAS are more specialized approaches to tuition-- and are taken usually for just the two years before being able to get a diploma and find a job in the chosen field. AA and AS are more general, and are geared towards people who would like to transfer their associates degree credits into a bachelor's degree. This is possible, and depending on the career you want, it’s actually quite lucrative to do so! It is called the 2+2 program, because an associates degree only requires 60 credits (two years full time) to graduate instead of of 120 (four years full time), but you can attend a technical school and earn your associates and then transfer those 60 credits into a bachelor’s degree afterwards, and only have to attend for another two years. You get to pay significantly less than if you paid for all four years of a bachelor's degree, and an associates can help those who might not have the highest undergraduate grades bump up their chances of getting into a more competitive 4-year college. You get the reduced price of a bachelor’s degree, with all of the benefits and higher employment rates it offers. An option that has also been becoming more popular is an online associate degree, which is even less expensive and you still get all the credits and experience you would need.  

The best way to tell if an associate’s degree is a good or better option than other pathways depends on what you want to do with your career, and it is a good idea to look at current job listings for the career you want and determine what requirements and advancements are commonly looked for by a potential employer.

https://www.capella.edu/blogs/cublog/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2014/12/1.png^^link

Now, looking more directly at a bachelor’s degree and the reasons why it’s the path most commonly taken by undergraduates. As the price-per-year of tutelage increases, so do the opportunities for growth and for higher pay in the workforce at the end of those four-five years. There is a significant increase in average salary and decreased unemployment rates, the job range increases, and you gain the requirements to eventually pursuing a masters and a doctorate (Ph.D.) degree. According to northeastern.edu using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Of the 11.6 million jobs created since 2010, over 8.4 million-- 95%-- have gone to bachelor's degree holders.” This degree also provides more opportunities for growth in communication and networking-- something that is becoming increasingly more important as the job world expands and becomes more specialized. Building a circle of people and organizations you are close with by interning and volunteering can dramatically boost your chances of finding a job. Not to mention, while you can get a good job with an associate’s degree, you are more often than not going to be competing with a person who has a bachelor's degree, as they are more often perceived as more qualified for the position. 

Bachelor’s degrees also provide opportunities for advancement to positions that offer higher pay-- like management, and they work specifically on the skills required to make those advancements possible. According to cappella.edu, “Fields like accounting, finance, and business management often require a bachelor’s degree at a minimum. These jobs typically offer more opportunities for career advancement and promotion. Depending on the position, some companies don’t care what your particular area of study was; just having a four-year degree meets their requirement.” And this is incredibly lucrative for finding a job in any field, not just the one that you happened to major in. 

Overall, even with all of the benefits that a bachelor’s degree provides in comparison to a single associate’s, it all comes down to what you want to do and if the time it takes to get the degree you want for the price and benefits it will provide in the future. For most people interested in college, a bachelor's degree is the way to go in terms of future worth and being able to support a family comfortably, but it is still good to know what other options can be taken advantage of as you research careers and pathways you are interested in. 

https://www.capella.edu/blogs/cublog/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2014/12/pew.png^^Link

“5 Differences Between an Associate's and Bachelor's Degree.” Capella University Blog, www.capella.edu/blogs/cublog/5-differences-of-associates-vs-bachelors-degree/.

Kerenzulli. “The 10 Highest-Paying Jobs You Can Get with an Associate's Degree.” CNBC, CNBC, 26 Apr. 2019, www.cnbc.com/2019/04/26/the-10-highest-paying-jobs-you-can-get-with-an-associates-degree.html.

“The ROI of a Bachelor's Degree.” Bachelor's Degree Completion, 14 Oct. 2020, www.northeastern.edu/bachelors-completion/news/is-a-bachelors-degree-worth-it/.

Study.com, study.com/different_degrees.html.

“What Is an Associate's Degree?” Top Universities, 24 Jan. 2020, www.topuniversities.com/blog/what-associates-degree. 

Why are important careers paid so little?

 Why are important careers paid so little?

Written By: Noah Douglas 

Teachers, firefighters, police officers, military soldiers, and paramedics all make (on average) less than $100,000 a year while shaping the community the most. Yet, professional athletes, singers, actors, and television personnel are all making millions of dollars while having little impact on a community. As seniors, there has always been the dream of once becoming one of those people making the most money, however, as reality sets in that not all of us are going to the pros, we recognize our other careers. But, how come our careers we desire don’t get paid very much money? How come sports players make millions while people saving others get paid a sliver of their annual salary? These are some of the most major questions that I have had while contemplating my future career. Will their salaries ever get increased?

On average, firefighters get $47,900 (median), while Major League Baseball players get on average $4.4 million. Police officers receive $60,500 while professional basketball players tend to make an average of $7.7 million. Teachers receive an average salary of $51,000 per year while NFL players make $860,000 per season. But what do all of these numbers mean? These numbers show the direct ways in which the pay system is flawed. People that are in the entertainment realm of sports, acting, singing, and being television personalities are all making 5 times more money than the people serving our country and saving lives every day are making. I recently reached out to the Governor of Wisconsin, Tony Evers, about how poor pay is for teachers who are some of the most influential people in shaping our communities. He stated that he passed a new bill that will increase the amount of money the school board can pay their teachers by nearly double their original salary. While this is a major improvement from what teachers pay now, that is still not nearly enough for how impactful they are on shaping society. Federal taxes pay the firefighters and the police officers. Firefighters' salary comes directly from the taxes of the community they work for and according to an article from turbotax.com, for every dollar in taxes, 4 cents go to both firefighter pay and police officer pay. That small number multiplied with the thousands of dollars in taxes is not nearly enough to cover each and every firefighter, police officer, paramedic, and other government officials’ pay every year. While these influencers are struggling with their money and truly needing to budget, LeBron James, J.J. Watt, Ariana Grande, and so many others are able to lack a budget simply because of their popularity, while ordinary civilians are saving lives, they are making just a fraction of their salaries again showing the major corrections that need to be made. Every person has a value in a community and entertainers should not be paid nearly that much as protectors are getting paid.

In the United States alone, the top 10 paid sports players or celebrities (excluding business owners) make a combined 1.536 BILLION dollars. That bizarre amount of money is more than 3,250 times the average salary of 10 firefighters. Because of the amount of money celebrities make off of their popularity, and how little money people that constantly risk their lives doing, really should send the message of how corrupt the economy is with people’s pay. While Americans are struggling with the concept of budgeting, celebrities have zero concerns of budgeting simply due to their much greater income. 

Though these numbers are very widespread, it still goes to show that people that are doing good for the communities around us, yet none of them are paid for nearly what they deserve. Every single person can make the argument that they deserve more money but, between firefighters, teachers, police officers and even soldiers, it is clear that they have the direct argument because of the ways that they shape the future and the safety of our communities. 

Works Cited

“The Celebrity 100: The World's Highest-Paid Celebrities 2020.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, www.forbes.com/celebrities/.

Emmiemartin. “This Chart Shows How Much Money Americans Earn at Every Age.” CNBC, CNBC, 21 Aug. 2019, www.cnbc.com/2019/07/24/how-much-money-americans-earn-at-every-age.html#:~:text=Full-time workers in the,How does your salary compare?

Jr., Tom Huddleston. “These Are the Highest Paid Players in the NBA Right Now.” CNBC, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2019, www.cnbc.com/2019/10/22/highest-paid-players-in-the-nba-right-now.html#:~:text=The average NBA player salary,season, according to Basketball Reference.

by, Written, and Courtenay Stevens. “Best States for Teacher Pay in 2020.” Business.org, 15 Oct. 2020, www.business.org/hr/employees/best-us-states-for-teachers/.

Selling your Soul for a College Degree: Student Loans

Selling your Soul for a College Degree: Student Loans

Written by: Drew Fox

Most of us are seniors and all of us are close to finishing our time in high school and graduating. Now whether you plan to go to college or not, it is important to understand student loans to get a grasp at what loans really are. College Tuition averages out to around $25,000 a year nationwide, which is around 100,000 dollars for a 4 year degree. Most people in the US can’t afford that amount out of pocket, so they go to another source, in order to pay it off.

Loans are a sum of money borrowed that is expected to be paid back with interest. Similar to a checking account at a bank, loans also have an interest rate, but instead of benefitting you, they benefit the loaner. Interest rates are either variable (meaning they can change based on circumstance) or fixed (never changing). 

Student Loans can be categorized as public or private, public being the loans from the government, and private being the loans from an outside source, both have benefits but you might have to use both in order to be able to pay the tuition fully. Public loans, also known as federal student loans have an interest rate set by Congress which range from about 4-7 percent depending on your circumstances. Within the public loans there are another two types, subsidized and unsubsidized. Subsidized loans do not carry interest while the borrower is in school. These loans are very nice, as they decrease the total amount needing to pay back in comparison to others, but they are only eligible to ceratin undergraduate students and the amount is based on the individuals financial need. If you want to know what you qualify for you have to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA if you’ve heard about it before. 

The other type of federal student loan is unsubsidized loans. Unsubsidized loans are available to anyone, graduate and undergraduate students no matter your amount of financial need. However, you still need to pay interest all through school. There are two ways deal with it. You either pay for it while your in school, or you can let it stockpile until you graduate. Letting it stockpile is good if you need to focus on school and cannot afford to pay the interest but it will increase the amount you will end up owing in the end. 

The other type of student loans are private loans, which will require you to fill out an application with a private owner. This includes a bank, credit union or online-only entity if you meet their borrowing requirements. Nonprofit organizations, state agencies and colleges can also make private student loans. The private lender chooses the interest rate which can vary significantly around 4-14 percent for fixed and 2-13 percent for variable. The amount chosen depends on a number of factors which mostly add up to the main factor of how likely you are to pay it back. 

Public loans tend to be better off in flexibility and interest rates but you might need a private loan if you don’t get enough money from the public loan. 

The flexibility given by the public loans come into play when your paying it back, through the different methods or repayment, which only some private lenders give. These include graduated repayment and extended repayment, Graduated payment creates a smaller initial payment and gradually get bigger over the payment timeline. Extended payment extends the usual 10 year pay period and then has a rent like system where the user pays a specific amount each month. These different payment systems can be good for those who need more time to get the money but they can increase your total because the interest stacks up. 

In conclusion, there is a lot of variety in student loans, and many of the options differ among people based on their eligibility for loans or personal preference. Its important for us to understand these loans before we take them, so that we don’t end up drowning in debt. Paying them off efficiently will help us out financially in the moment, as well as in the future when we need to take out another loan for a car, business, or house. 

Works Cited 

“Best Personal Loan Rates for November 2020.” Bankrate, www.bankrate.com/loans/personal-loans/rates/.

Llc, Earnest Operations. “How Do Loans Work?: Earnest.” Earnest Blog - Money Advice for Young Professionals, EARNEST OPERATIONS LLC, 1 Sept. 2020, www.earnest.com/blog/how-do-loans-work/.

McGurran, Brianna. “How To Get A Private Student Loan.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 14 Sept. 2020, www.forbes.com/advisor/student-loans/how-to-get-a-private-student-loan/.

Stobierski, Tim. “Everything You Need to Know About Paying Down Student Loans.” Student Loans 101: Everything You Need to Know Before You Borrow | Northwestern Mutual, Northwestern Mutual, 8 Sept. 2017, www.northwesternmutual.com/life-and-money/student-loans-101-everything-you-need-to-know-before-you-borrow/. 

Are College Meal Plans Worth it?

 Are College Meal Plans worth it? 

Anna Brandl

College students across the United States are faced with multiple decisions when it comes to their college education. Many of these decisions are monetary whether it be dorms, textbooks, or tuition, but often students are left wondering which decisions are best for them. One of these decisions is meal plans. Students already are paying for tuition and dorms, and most of the time students are left to wonder if a meal plan is really worth the cost. Based on observation of average cost for meal plans and tuition, the worth of college meal plans varies for each student. 

An average college charges about $4,500 a year for a meal plan consisting of three meals a day. That averages out to around $18.75 a day. This cost adds up quickly, and by the time a student finishes college, they would have spent $18,000 on this meal plan alone. With college students spending money on these meal plans, the economy is losing out on consumers spending a great deal of money on supplies like groceries. Students spend large amounts of money on meal plans that often don’t get utilized to the full extent. Shown in the bar graph pictured to the left, we can see that some college students are spending over $7,000 on a meal plan. Rather than using only the meals provided by their school, students purchase substitute goods such as snacks, microwavable meals, and other food items that often prevent them from using their meal plans, thus causing the benefit of the plan to decrease. 

The debate of college meal plans depends greatly on the marginal cost and benefits of each plan. For a student who plans to buy most of their own groceries or have dietary restrictions that limit their food choices, spending $4,500 on a meal plan doesn’t provide a great enough benefit to outweigh the cost. Instead, these students are paying more money than they need to which could have been used to pay for tuition or textbooks. The opportunity cost in this situation is that if students pay for a meal plan - no matter what options that their college provides - then they don’t have that money to put into another aspect of their education. The student who paid more than the average of $4,500 shown in the bar graph, would be losing out on much more expenses that could be used for a substitute good like groceries. Another opportunity cost is that if students rely fully on the meal plan to use it to the full extent, then said students lose out on the opportunity to learn necessary life skills like cooking. Also, one downfall to meal plans is that they hike up tuition costs which causes the students to have to weigh in the benefits and costs once again. 

In conclusion, it cannot be denied that meal plans for college students have cost students a lot of money that could have been spent on other things. However, it cannot be determined if they are worth it or not because each person has a different situation, and most importantly it comes down to whether or not the marginal benefit outweighs the cost for each individual. 

Works Cited

Mathewson, Tara García. “A Tough-to-Swallow Reason College Keeps Costing More: the Price of Meal Plans.” The Hechinger Report, 30 Mar. 2020, hechingerreport.org/tough-swallow-reason-college-keeps-costing-price-meal-plans/.

Rogak, Lisa. “College Meal Plan vs. No Meal Plan: The Debate.” College Covered, 30 July 2020, www.collegecovered.com/getting-into-college/college-meal-plan-vs-no-meal-plan-the-debate/. 

Economist’s Look at the Company Lululemon

Claudia Biebel

 One brand that has been on the rise since 1998 and blossoming into popularity is Lululemon. The yoga, athleisure company is known for its high prices, along with high-quality items. Lululemon sells workout clothes of all kinds for men and women. From leggings to winter jackets there is an article of clothing for every season. This blog post takes one into the economist’s perspective of the brand Lululemon, and how it gained its economic success throughout the years. 

According to Sean Ross of Investopedia, “Economic growth only comes from increasing the quality and quantity of the factors of production, which consist of four broad types: land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship” (Ross, Investopedia). If economists gauge success based on the number of goods bought, how is Lululemon so successful with it’s high prices? Well, Lululemon customers expect to pay around $40 to $100 dollars for a sports bra and around $100 for a pair of leggings. There are no promotions to look forward to as Lululemon has a flat price that does not change. While this high price might drive some customers away, it also benefits the company because they don’t have to rely on promotions to bring customers in the door; they have consumers who will shop there no matter what. Presently, heavy discounting is hurting retail stores because they rely too heavily on the promotion to bring customers in, and heavy discounts can make certain items appear not as desirable. 

When looking at supply and demand--the price regulation based on considerations of product, the desire of buyers, and commodity--Lululemon has consistently had an uptrend as the demand is higher than the supply in most cases. In a CNBC clip, they predicted this gain when discussing the hit retail took from the virus, saying that Lululemon would be one of the few retail companies to gain. Especially in 2019, the stock had a 41.13% gain. Supply and demand are the simple reasoning behind this gain. Why did the demand go up in a year with a global pandemic? Looking at the trends of people, activities like yoga, running, and at-home-workouts erupted during the shutdown. People stopped dressing up formally and switched their outfits to athleisure. People turned to a company that specialized in clothing for their new interests. Mirroring Lululemon’s consistency from previous years, even amid the pandemic Lululemon had their staid prices; there was no need to wait on a promotion or markdown. 

Economically Lululemon also succeeds through its market base by targeting communities more locally. Lululemon hosts yoga and pilates sessions at their various store locations. By creating a more local sense, it overrules its athleisure competitors that don’t have local benefits for the people. In addition to complimentary workout sessions held occasionally, Lululemon uses the idea that people want to be educated rather than sold. Business Blueprint describes it as, “The classes could be ‘An Introduction to Yoga’ or ‘Cooking Healthy Food Fast’. To run these classes they use local trainers and experts who volunteer their time. This drives more people into their stores and when they’re there, guess what? They buy stuff” (Business Blueprint). This marketing trick makes consumers feel that the company truly cares about enhancing the people, and proves the company has experts working to provide the best quality products. 

Some may call Lululemon overpriced, but the tradeoffs of Lululemon should be noted; sure it’s expensive, but it has high-quality items that can last a long time, and the brand’s high-quality name adds a layer of sophistication. Looking at the consistency of Lululemon, economists pinpoint their successes in price stability and maintaining a competitive marketing strategy. Lululemon is definitely a quality over quantity business. 

Works Cited

Downey, Lucas. “Lululemon Shares Stretch Higher on Big Demand in 2019.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 12 Sept. 2020, www.investopedia.com/lululemon-shares-stretch-higher-on-big-demand-in-2019-4690483.

Hanbury, Mary. “Lululemon Keeps Its Prices High, and It's a Brilliant Business Move.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 5 June 2018, www.businessinsider.com/lululemon-expensive-clothing-is-good-for-business-2018-6.

Quiroz, Michael Angelo. “A Growth Strategy for Lululemon 2018.” Medium, Medium, 31 Dec. 2018, medium.com/@michaelangelo_q/a-growth-strategy-for-lululemon-68819680e511.

Ross, Sean. “Why the Factors of Production Are IImportant to Economic Activity.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 28 Aug. 2020, www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/040715/why-are-factors-production-important-economic-growth.asp.

says:, Yoginomics, and Edgar S says: “Eight Secrets to Lululemon's Success.” Business Blueprint, 12 Sept. 2019, businessblueprint.com.au/secrets-to-success-lululemon/.