The share of Americans who say college is "very important" has plummeted over the past decade, Axios' Emily Peck reports from new Gallup polling.

• Why it matters: College may not live up to the American Dream that it promised in the past, and there are alternative pathways for success that are becoming more appealing for Gen Z. But in terms of lifetime earnings, a college degree remains a stark indicator.

The big picture: There are plenty of reasons for the decline in perceived value among Americans.

• School is expensive, student loan debt is often onerous and job security for those with degrees has diminished.
• There's also growing interest and appeal for young adults in the skilled trades — becoming plumbers, electricians, etc. — especially as AI appears to threaten white collar work.

But college grads earn more than twice what high-school graduates make.

• The median income in a household headed by someone with at least a bachelor's degree was $132,700 last year — that's more than double the $58,410 median income of a household led by a high-school grad, according to Census income data released last week.
• Earnings for college-led households have pulled away from the pack — rising more than 6% over the past two decades, compared with a 3% increase for high school graduates.

Reality check: It's certainly possible to become successful without a degree — just ask Mark Zuckerberg.

• Plus, the rapid advancement of AI is fueling concern about job prospects for knowledge workers across industries. And shortages of certain blue-collar workers have put a spotlight on the trades as a strong alternative career path.

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Authorities are investigating whether Tyler Robinson, suspected of killing Charlie Kirk, believed Kirk's views on gender identity were hateful to people like Robinson's transgender roommate, six sources familiar with the case tell Axios' Marc Caputo.

• Why it matters: Investigators believe Robinson's anger at Kirk's views could be a key to establishing a motive for the slaying of the controversial activist whose death sent shockwaves through American politics.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) told Kristen Welker on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Robinson "does come from a conservative family. But his ideology was very different than his family … We can confirm that that roommate is a boyfriend who is transitioning from male to female."

• Cox said the roommate has been "very cooperative with authorities."

The roommate was "aghast" at the slaying when speaking to investigators and shared electronic messages sent by Robinson, one of Axios' sources said.

• The phone messages indicated a sender listed as "Tyler" had mentioned that after the shooting, he had wrapped his rifle in a towel and stashed it in some bushes near Utah Valley University, where the shooting occurred, Cox said Friday during a news conference.

Read on.

Erika Kirk's defiant remarks about her husband's assassination, delivered next to the microphone and big swivel chair where he hosted "The Charlie Kirk Show," have more than 3.7 million views as of this morning.

• On the video, she addresses Kirk's killer directly:

"If you thought that my husband's mission was powerful before, you have no idea. You have no idea what you just have unleashed across this entire country and this world. You have no idea. You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife. The cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry."

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🌵 A memorial service open to the public, "Building a Legacy: Remembering Charlie Kirk," will be held a week from today (Sunday morning, Sept. 21) at State Farm Stadium — an NFL stadium near Turning Point USA headquarters in Phoenix. (capacity: more than 60,000).

• "Charlie's life was short, but it was full," the announcement says.

Trump told reporters earlier this week that he had spoken with Erika Kirk, and will attend the service: "They've asked me to go and I think I have an obligation to do it ... Whenever it is, I'll be going."

• Service details at a new website, "Fight for Charlie."

Benton County, Ark., saw the most wage growth among large U.S. counties between the first quarters of 2024 and 2025, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick writes from new federal data.

• Benton County is home to Walmart, trucking giant J.B. Hunt and other major employers.

Zoom out: Nationally, average weekly wages rose 4.1% to $1,589.

• But inflation rose about 2.7% during the period, taking a bite out of those gains.

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The unemployment rate for Black Americans is up sharply this year.

• Why it matters: It's a crisis for those losing their jobs and a flashing red indicator light for the economy overall, Axios' Emily Peck reports.

The Black unemployment rate has long been higher than the jobless rate overall — but the gap narrows when the labor market is strong, as it was in 2019 right before the pandemic and during the strong job market of 2022 and 2023.

• "When the economy takes a downturn, it hits Black Americans first," says Chris Martin, lead researcher on jobs site Glassdoor's economic research team.

By the numbers: The Black unemployment rate was 7.5% in August — a rate that would be viewed as catastrophic if it were the overall jobless number. It is up more than a point from the beginning of the year.

• That's compared with an overall unemployment rate of 4.3%, up slightly from 4% in January. The white unemployment rate (3.7%) is also up just 0.2 points over that period.

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Axios' Erica Pandey — your weekend host, the daughter of two Nepali immigrants and a native Nepali speaker — writes: After days of protests that killed at least 51 people and brought down the government, calm returned to Nepal this weekend.

• Nepalis in the country and around the world watched as Sushila Karki, a 73-year-old, long-time opponent of corruption, was appointed the Himalayan nation's first woman prime minister.

Erica's thought bubble: Friends and family in Nepal and abroad have spent the week glued to headlines and TikToks, stunned as peaceful demonstrations led by determined young people spiraled into violence.

• This weekend brought resolution and relief. My dad — a typical girl dad — texted me and my sister and posted on X: "Feel so proud as a Nepali to see the first woman PM in Nepal, even if she's interim for now. Women are always better leaders than men."

On her first day, Karki visited injured protesters at the Civil Hospital in Kathmandu, AP reports.

• "I will work with everything I have," she told an injured protester recovering from gunshot wounds.

Many protesters, who are mostly young people and students, grabbed brooms and trash bags to help crews clean up streets and public buildings that were damaged during the week's demonstrations.

• Go deeper: How Nepali youth picked a prime minister in a chat room, via N.Y. Times (gift link)

Terence Crawford changed boxing's hierarchy last night.

• Why it matters: Canelo Alvarez was the face of boxing — the most bankable star — but Crawford moved up multiple weight classes and beat him. Now, Crawford will likely be universally considered the best "pound-for-pound" (meaning in any weight class) boxer in the world, Axios' Troy Smith writes.

"I know what I'm capable of," Crawford said. "It's not a surprise. It's a surprise to y'all because you all didn't believe in me."

• Last night's crowd of 70,482 was mostly there for Alvarez, the bigger name, but there were chants of "Crawford" in the later rounds of the fight, AP reports.

"We knew Crawford is a great fighter," Alvarez said. "I did what I was supposed to do. I trained really hard. He deserved all the credit."

Professional porch decorating is becoming big business around the country.

• For hundreds — or even over a thousand — dollars, a growing field of "pumpkin concierges" will deliver and decoratively assemble gourds, Axios' Sami Sparber writes.

Packages range from eye-catching clusters — with add-ons like hay bales and cornstalks costing extra — to abundant displays that cascade down a home's entryway.

• Some businesses even offer to dispose of the pumpkins after Halloween or Thanksgiving for a fee.

Keep reading.