Sweeney Sweeney

School’s Out for Summer, School’s Out Forever…

Jim Sweeney

It may not be easy “being green,” but it is even harder not having any green. Ask the students who can’t afford college, or even the colleges that can’t afford to stay open. Just today, Miami-Dade College canceled enrollment drives and capped enrollment. Even smaller colleges like Wesleyan are trimming budgets in anticipation of declining enrollment.


When the day is long and the night, the night is yours alone,
When you’re sure you’ve had enough of this life, well hang on
Don’t let yourself go, ’cause everybody cries and everybody hurts sometimes

And what about the new crop of graduates, are they about to cash-in on their investment in higher education? Mmmmmmmm, probably not right away. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, just 19.7 percent of 2009 graduates who applied for a job actually have one, compared to 51 percent of those graduating in 2007 and 26 percent in 2008.


Even back in jolly ol’ England, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) reported that nearly half of the UK-based companies surveyed said that they were not planning to recruit those leaving school or college this year. The research comes weeks after a separate survey found that only one university student in five expects to have secured a job by the time they graduate.

Sometimes everything is wrong. Now it’s time to sing along
When your day is night alone, (hold on, hold on)
If you feel like letting go, (hold on)
When you think you’ve had too much of this life, well hang on

‘Cause everybody hurts. Take comfort in your friends
Everybody hurts. Don’t throw your hand. Oh, no. Don’t throw your hand
If you feel like you’re alone, no, no, no, you are not alone

And, according to an article in the Washington Independent (referencing the Chronicle for Higher Education), the bubble may be about to burst: With tuitions, fees, and room and board at dozens of colleges now reaching $50,000 a year, the ability to sustain private higher education for all but the very well-heeled is questionable. According to the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, over the past 25 years, average college tuition and fees have risen by 440 percent — more than four times the rate of inflation and almost twice the rate of medical care. Patrick M. Callan, the center’s president, has warned that low-income students will find college unaffordable.


If you’re on your own in this life, the days and nights are long,
When you think you’ve had too much of this life to hang on

Still, there is reason for hope. President Barack Obama is a supporter of higher education, as is Sonia Sotomayor and Joe Biden (a huge advocate of community college). Likewise, the legislature seems more inclined to act on supporting higher education than it is to act on universal healthcare.  And then there is the glimmer of hope that the worst of the recession may already be behind us. CNNMoney.com reports: The end of the recession is in sight, according to a new survey of leading economists. If you don’t believe it, just ask McDonald’s.

Well, everybody hurts sometimes,
Everybody cries. And everybody hurts sometimes
And everybody hurts sometimes. So, hold on, hold on
Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on
Everybody hurts. You are not alone 

Jim Sweeney

CEO & COO

Jim is a veteran of the agency industry and the founder of Sweeney. He is uncommonly passionate about the idea of creating and implementing insanely great marketing campaigns that achieve insanely great results. He pioneered the full-service, full-circle agency model and continues to forge new ideas in an ever-changing industry. And he is accessible to everyone about anything, seemingly all the time, serving as a mentor to all agency personnel and clients.

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