Earlier this year, a Pew poll showed a shocking development: trust in universities, especially among Republicans, was on a sharp decline. In total, roughly 36% of Americans hold a negative view of colleges and universities while 55% hold positive views. However, trust among Republicans has been declining over the past several years.
Despite being handed billions of dollars by federal and state governments, affordable education has become a pipe dream for many middle and working class Americans.
Distrust of higher education had skyrocketed. Back in 2010, 32% of Republicans held negative views of higher education. By 2017, that had skyrocketed to 58%. In 2010, 58% of Republicans had a positive view of higher education. By 2017, that had plummeted to 36%.
I’d argue that this decline was caused, in part, by the bombastic pandering of pundits. Universities have been turned into bogeymen, alleged bastions of “communist” thought and ultra-liberal professors dogmatically brainwashing their students. However, universities deserve a lot of blame as well.
Oftentimes, professors like to abstract away the world, instead getting lost in their own thoughts and daydreams.
Universities have become dogmatic. It’s common for departments to have “liberal” or “conservative” reputations. Oftentimes, professors like to abstract away the world, instead getting lost in their own thoughts and daydreams. Meanwhile, despite being handed billions of dollars by federal and state governments, affordable education has become a pipe dream for many middle and working-class Americans.
Tuition and cost of living can easily top $20,000 at in-state schools. Private universities? Tuition alone can cost more than many make per year. Many private universities rely on funding to conduct research. Yet this research is often hidden behind ivy walls. Even the articles produced by said research are often hidden away in expensive academic journals.
Universities Often Leave Views Unchallenged
Are universities bastions of “liberal” and “socialist” thought? As for myself, I’ve found many professors to be quite neutral in class, usually allowing students to air out ideas and test them. Generally, both “liberal” and “conservative” views were tested and challenged. I’ve seen many professors challenge views that they themselves were sympathetic to.
A critique or counterpoint to a political belief often seemed to be viewed as a grave and personal insult.
I have encountered partisan professors in action, including both liberal and conservative. However, they were generally the exception rather than the rule. The “communist brainwashing” alleged by many pundits, on the other hand, seemed to be little more than a myth.
What I have found is that students themselves often don’t like to have their views challenged. A critique or counterpoint to a political belief often seemed to be viewed as a grave and personal insult. Beliefs were held to be sacred, and anything counter to that belief made you into a near mortal enemy.
The inability to consider challenges to one’s views tends to result in stagnant beliefs.
Unfortunately, such a stance tends to stifle intellectual thought and debate. The inability to consider challenges to one’s views tends to result in stagnant beliefs. Universities can be echo chambers where students are afraid to speak out.
Head to an economics class taught by a classical liberal economist (which would be closer economically to a Republican) and a student with progressive views might encounter a lot of pushback. Head to a sociology class taught by a progressive professor, and a conservative student likewise might not feel welcomed among his classmates even if the professor tries to stay neutral.
Admittedly, I haven’t found myself in a university class for some years. It’s possible that conditions have either improved or worsened since.
Universities Need to Get Their Priorities Straight
Universities are far from perfect. Over the last few decades, the costs of college education have risen at a far greater rate than inflation. Part of this can be blamed on dwindling public funds. However, burgeoning administrative staffs are also driving up costs.
Between 2000 and 2012, university payrolls increased by about 28%. You might think that it’s hot-shot professors driving Italian sports cars, but in reality, most of the added jobs were administrative. According to federal data, from 1987 to 2012, universities added more than half a million professional and administrative staff members.
Increasingly enrollment means that academic faculty has had to expand, of course. However, when academic departments do grow, it’s often on the backs of poorly paid adjunct professors. In 1987 such part-timers made up only 1/3 of academic payrolls. Now they make up about half.
Does every young American need a college education? Or would they be better served by skilled trades training and other types of education?
We have to ask whether such a system makes sense and if our priorities are straight. Growing enrollment numbers mean that academic and administrative staffs have to grow. However, administrative staffs have expanded at a far faster rate than college enrollment.
There are also other complicated questions to consider. Should public university coaches really be paid upwards of $5 million? While the biggest and best athletic departments are self-sustaining, many smaller schools have been levying fees on students in an effort to keep up in the rat race.
Do dorms really need multi-million-dollar makeovers? Is there potential to cut waste in dorms? At many colleges, a dorm room is more expensive than the nearby apartments.
Of course, there are more fundamental questions to ask as well. Does every young American need a college education? Or would they be better served by skilled trades training and other types of education?
Either way, as costs continue to skyrocket and the American economy continues to adjust to new world realities, academia needs to do a lot of soul-searching.
