In Defense of the Money-Grubbing Universities
By D.J. McGuire | Thursday, June 10th, 2010 | Catch-All
There is a lot of discussion surrounding the slow-motion “realignment” of the college sports conferences (a.k.a., the Big 12′s death march). Much of it has been a slew of laments that the institutions of higher learning are looking for the best financial deal they can get from the Big 10 or the Pac-10. “Purists” galore have been slamming the events of the last week.
I’d love to know why.
Is it really terrible that our colleges and universities are looking for the best deal they can get? Lest we forget, these are dollars that will go to educating the nation’s children and young adults. More money means more opportunities for students. When did that become a bad thing?
The overwhelming majority of which are state schools. Would their critics prefer they rely only on currently strapped state governments? Do they think it’s better for colleges to rely on working-class and unemployed taxpayers instead of major TV networks for their revenue?
Would they prefer UCLA and Cal (part of the PAC-10 that’s trying to seize half of the Big 12) take their chances with the byzantine and bankrupt California government instead of ESPN? Really?
Not me. I applaud the efforts of college presidents to find new and larger streams of market revenue for their students and faculty. Better they fund their efforts by proving their worth in the business world than by forcibly reaching into our pockets during the Great Recession.
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Former candidate for Board of Supervisors in Spotsylvania, current blogger, economics teacher, and long-rumored windbag. There are two causes closest to the heart: steering the country away from the social democratic nonsense that is sinking Europe, and convincing the rest of the "rightosphere" that the NBA really is a joy to watch.
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5 Responses to "In Defense of the Money-Grubbing Universities"
[...] Cross-posted to Bearing Drift Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)It is Not All About the SEC: Conferences and the NFLMid-majors making tourney funBig Ten Expansion Follow-Up Post #3 – More on the Financial Gap Between t…Analysis – Conferences Consider Expansion, Not Tradition – News Analysis – … [...]
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Or they could cut their costs, like every other business has done.
Information is more accessible now than at any point in our history, yet centers of higher education are charging more than ever for their services. They still practice on a model of students living in dorms away from home, attending lectures, going to the university library, writing papers, and going into massive debt to do so.
When will colleges increase productivity rather than just increase their revenue?
Yes Brian, “information” is more accessible, but no one with a brain will ever confuse information with knowledge, insight, and the ability to think rationally and act responsibly.
Keep pushing tax increases and thinking it’s rational, Mike.
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