Kansas House backs giving students college and wage data

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas House has unanimously passed a bill that would require the Kansas State Department of Education to send students starting in the seventh grade information about college costs and the average wages for graduates with various degrees.

The legislation passed by the House on Thursday would also require the department to distribute employment and wage information for those with technical educations and those in each branch of the military.

“We should give our students every opportunity to realize what a college education can provide them, but also opportunities in other fields, such as our building trades and our military services," Rep. Jerry Stogsdill, a Prairie Village Democrat, said during Wednesday's debate.

The Kansas Board of Regents, which oversees Kansas' public universities, already publishes data on undergraduate degree programs on its website. It also expressed support for the bill in written testimony, saying that it is working with the state Department of Education to include the website in a program that involves career planning for students.

The bill now goes to the Senate.