Nice reply Jodi.
Historical wages of nurses vs janitors show how the times fluctuate. Once a skill becomes a demand, and that skill requires experience and aprentencing over schooling, then those with specific skill and experience make the money.
Nurse wages and Janitor wages like to swap places every 30 years in the world. Janitors become handymen jack of all trades that become a huge need, and nurses become middlemen that arent as important. Its a strange twist that defines how you can put a lot into a peice of paper of some sort. Some fields will require a degree no matter what, and some fields will require the knowledge of the ever changing industry. Getting a degree is the easy way out for most people. I'm a bit biased. I dropped out of high school because of family problems, never went back to school, but I can still retire securely 25 years earlier than the national average. Not everyone is meant to be prestigious. Not everyone can survive without a degree either.
My children know that they need a plan to get to what they want in life. Im not forcing them to go to college, and I'm confidant that they wont be doomed if they don't.
http://www.angelfire.com/stars4/lists/dropouts.html