The 10 Dumbest States in America

[Janelle2002 3,865]

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- When writing an article ranking the "smartest" and "dumbest" states in the Union it is important to explain your methodology. This list is based on the level of education a certain percentage of the residents of each state achieves.

According to information compiled by the website infoplease.com, as of 2010 men with a BA make 60% more than their counterparts with a high school diploma -- $40,000 to $64,000 -- while women with BA's make 56.6% more than their counterparts with a lower level of education -- $30,000 to $47,000.

And the gulf is widening. Twenty years ago male college graduates only made 47.5% more than high school grads while female BA holders made 53% more.

For this reason there is some correlation between states with higher percentages of people with Bachelor's and advanced degrees also having fewer people living below the poverty line.

One would think that states with more colleges and universities per capita might do better on this list but that is not necessarily the case. Vermont -- number 8 on the smartest list -- has the most schools per capita with 1 university per 36,545.3 residents, while New Jersey -- number 6 on the smartest list -- has the second lowest number of schools per capita with 1 university per 526,764.8 residents.

Average SAT scores also do not accurately reflect the level of education as certain states with higher average SAT scores have a smaller percentage of students taking the test. North Dakotan students for example had an average SAT score of 1799 in 2013, good for second in the country. However, the state only had a 2% participation rate.

Intuitively states offering better jobs will attract better educated residents. The correlation between states offering better opportunities and the number of college graduates residing there is strong. Maryland -- number 3 on the smartest list -- leads the nation in median household income at $70,004 while Mississippi and West Virginia -- numbers three and one respectively on the dumbest list -- are at the bottom of the median household income list.

Here is a list of the 10 "smartest" and "dumbest" states based on percentage of the population with Bachelor's degrees...

10th Smartest: Minnesota

9th Smartest: New Hampshire

8th Smartest: New York

7th Smartest: Vermont

6th Smartest: Virginia

5th Smartest: New Jersey

4th Smartest: Connecticut

3rd Smartest: Maryland

2nd Smartest: Colorado

The Most Smart State: Massachusetts

10th Dumbest: Tennessee (gotta love my home state )

9th Dumbest: Oklahoma

8th Dumbest: Indiana

7th Dumbest: Alabama

6th Dumbest: Nevada

5th Dumbest: Louisiana

4th Dumbest: Kentucky

3rd Dumbest: Mississippi

2nd Dumbest: Arkansas

The Dumbest State in America: West Virginia

http://www.thestreet.com/story/12712489/20/the-10-dumbest-states-in-america.html

[mota bhai 2,675]

West Virginia, hardly a surprise.

I would have expected MA and MD to be top 2, but that's probably only because I know so little about CO.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

[GandD 5,966]

Oh we all knew KY would be in there. Interesting note, the "Gatton Academy" is located here in Bowling Green and is one of the highest if not the highest ranked high schools in the US.

[mota bhai 2,675]

Oh we all knew KY would be in there. Interesting note, the "Gatton Academy" is located here in Bowling Green and is one of the highest if not the highest ranked high schools in the US.

The presence of smart people in Kentucky in no way detracts from their overall status as one of the dumbest states in the country.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Oh we all knew KY would be in there. Interesting note, the "Gatton Academy" is located here in Bowling Green and is one of the highest if not the highest ranked high schools in the US.

I don't think anyone here thinks that everyone is KY is dumb

Have you lived there your whole life?

[GandD 5,966]

The presence of smart people in Kentucky in no way detracts from their overall status as one of the dumbest states in the country.

Yeah yeah.

I don't think anyone here thinks that everyone is KY is dumb

Have you lived there your whole life?

Yeppers.

[mota bhai 2,675]

Yeah yeah.

Yeppers.

Imagine how much smarter you'd be if you spent a few years in Massacchusets with all the Massholes.

[GandD 5,966]

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Imagine how much smarter you'd be if you spent a few years in Massacchusets with all the Massholes.

[GandD 5,966]

Imagine how much smarter you'd be if you spent a few years in Massacchusets with all the Massholes.

Oh one can only dream.

[Operator 1,927]

Here is a list of the 10 "smartest" and "dumbest" states based on percentage of the population with Bachelor's degrees...

In my opinion using a Bachelor's degree as an indication of someone's intelligence; or lack thereof, is dumb.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

In my opinion using a Bachelor's degree as an indication of someone's intelligence; or lack thereof, is dumb.

That is true on an individual level. But get a whole state together where no one has done any book lernin' and it seems like a recipe for trouble.

[mota bhai 2,675]

That is true on an individual level. But get a whole state together where no one has done any book lernin' and it seems like a recipe for trouble.

As long as most books are written by libruls, I'm not convinced there is any real societal benefit to book larnin'.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- When writing an article ranking the "smartest" and "dumbest" states in the Union it is important to explain your methodology. This list is based on the level of education a certain percentage of the residents of each state achieves.

According to information compiled by the website infoplease.com, as of 2010 men with a BA make 60% more than their counterparts with a high school diploma -- $40,000 to $64,000 -- while women with BA's make 56.6% more than their counterparts with a lower level of education -- $30,000 to $47,000.

And the gulf is widening. Twenty years ago male college graduates only made 47.5% more than high school grads while female BA holders made 53% more.

For this reason there is some correlation between states with higher percentages of people with Bachelor's and advanced degrees also having fewer people living below the poverty line.

One would think that states with more colleges and universities per capita might do better on this list but that is not necessarily the case. Vermont -- number 8 on the smartest list -- has the most schools per capita with 1 university per 36,545.3 residents, while New Jersey -- number 6 on the smartest list -- has the second lowest number of schools per capita with 1 university per 526,764.8 residents.

Average SAT scores also do not accurately reflect the level of education as certain states with higher average SAT scores have a smaller percentage of students taking the test. North Dakotan students for example had an average SAT score of 1799 in 2013, good for second in the country. However, the state only had a 2% participation rate.

Intuitively states offering better jobs will attract better educated residents. The correlation between states offering better opportunities and the number of college graduates residing there is strong. Maryland -- number 3 on the smartest list -- leads the nation in median household income at $70,004 while Mississippi and West Virginia -- numbers three and one respectively on the dumbest list -- are at the bottom of the median household income list.

Here is a list of the 10 "smartest" and "dumbest" states based on percentage of the population with Bachelor's degrees...

10th Smartest: Minnesota

9th Smartest: New Hampshire

8th Smartest: New York

7th Smartest: Vermont

6th Smartest: Virginia

5th Smartest: New Jersey

4th Smartest: Connecticut

3rd Smartest: Maryland

2nd Smartest: Colorado

The Most Smart State: Massachusetts

10th Dumbest: Tennessee (gotta love my home state )

9th Dumbest: Oklahoma

8th Dumbest: Indiana

7th Dumbest: Alabama

6th Dumbest: Nevada

5th Dumbest: Louisiana

4th Dumbest: Kentucky

3rd Dumbest: Mississippi

2nd Dumbest: Arkansas

The Dumbest State in America: West Virginia

http://www.thestreet.com/story/12712489/20/the-10-dumbest-states-in-america.html

Of course that is nothing more than a slam piece against Southern states. The term dumb is subjective and demeaning

As a student of advanced Grammar. I find it amusing the people who wrote this article called the smartest state " the most smart" kind of telling