The Death of Public Universities

Published by

Clarissa

March 11, 2016

State governments have reduced the funding they give to public universities to puny little amounts. State funds now rarely cover more than 10-20% of public colleges’ needs. In return for these shrinking amounts, state governments demand increasing governmental control over who gets hired or fired, what gets taught, what research is conducted, etc. These Big Government policies are, of course, especially rampant in Republican states.

It begins to look like the most reasonable thing to do is to let the very concept of public universities die. If the public doesn’t need them and keeps voting for people who introduce these policies, then maybe the public should be humored and given what it wants. The time has come for public universities to ditch the public, raise tuitions, and tell the state governments to go stuff it.

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10 responses to “The Death of Public Universities”

matt

March 11, 2016

I get your job is tied to public schools, but you are a very smart person. Its fair to say its bad policy to cut funding (not that I completely agree), but it is unhinged and illogical to say that spending less (hence SMALLER govt) is somehow BIG Government policies in Republican states.

That is just intellectually dishonest.

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1. cliff arroyo
  
  March 11, 2016
  
  “it is unhinged and illogical to say that spending less (hence SMALLER govt) is somehow BIG Government policies in Republican states”
  
  It doesn’t matter how much spending a governmnet does, when it sticks its nose into every aspect of public education (wanting a say in who’s hired and who isn’t and what’s taught and how) then it’s Big Government.
  
  Communist governments hardly spent anything on higher education, did that make them proponents of smaller government?
  
  “Small government” is a sucker’s line that still pays dividends for the republicans in state politics.
  
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  1. Clarissa
    
    March 11, 2016
    
    Great point about Communist governments.
    
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2. hkatz
  
  March 11, 2016
  
  Go back to the original post and re-read this part:
  
  “In return for these shrinking amounts, state governments demand increasing governmental control over who gets hired or fired, what gets taught, what research is conducted, etc.”
  
  That’s the big government referred to. Not only less funds.
  
  Reading comprehension more important than whatever satisfaction you get in telling someone their thoughts are unhinged, illogical and lacking intellectual honesty.
  
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  1. matt
    
    March 11, 2016
    
    I very clearly read that. Ultimately take no government funding and they can’t dictate any terms… Which, will be the solution over the next 10-25 years so we will all get our wish. 🙂
    
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    1. Evelina Anville
      
      March 11, 2016
      
      “Ultimately take no government funding and they can’t dictate any terms… Which, will be the solution over the next 10-25 years so we will all get our wish.”
      
      Your wish is to have no public higher education? Really? This is so sad to me. I never would have gotten a degree at all if it wasn’t for public higher ed. There was no way I could have afforded a private college–especially when I was 18 and making about $9.00 an hour.
      
      But I guess an aggressively ignorant populace is better for the Republican agenda. So it makes sense that conservatives advocate for it. Sigh….
      
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    2. Z
      
      March 11, 2016
      
      They can “dictate terms” (make laws, appoint regents who make policy) as long as the university is a state entity, even if they stop appropriating money for it.
      
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      1. Clarissa
        
        March 11, 2016
        
        Exactly. We aren’t getting any state appropriations because there is no state budget but the Republican governor is trying to micromanage every little thing. I guess he has nothing better to do with his time.
        
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3. Clarissa
  
  March 11, 2016
  
  Republican governors impose endless regulations and bureaucratic procedures while they cut funding. More regulations and more bureaucracy equals BIG government.
  
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Evelina Anville

March 11, 2016

The problem is that all of these anti-Education legislators are getting voted in by a slim majority. In Wisconsin, I think Walker got something like 51% of the vote? I don’t know Rauner’s exact numbers but I know that he is unpopular with a large percentage of the state. So there is a sizable group of people who want public education (and other social institutions) to thrive.

I think all the Rauner/Walker/Jindal supporters should just all have their own portion of the country that can be some theocratic version of the Wild West: all guns, churches, poisoned water, crumbling infrastructure, and endless pregnancies for women. Then maybe the rest of us who want a functioning government can live in peace.

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