<p>Another interesting AP story on education by Justin Pope. </p>
<p>The</a> Associated Press: College closings rare, but could rise in downturn </p>
<p>"Colleges are remarkably resilient institutions. Princeton University's Nassau Hall still bears the cannonball marks from the Revolutionary War battle that raged near campus. Dickinson and Bowdoin colleges saw their first buildings burn down, as did the University of Vermont, which also survived its first president going insane."</p>
<p>My Dual enrollment college North Central, just posted a bunch of facts about its endowment to get people to go there because some parents were worried the school would collapse within their kids 4 year term.</p>
<p>Is that the North Central in Illinois? (There is a similarly named college here in Minnesota, which is why I ask.)</p>
<p>Meanwhile, a lot of college presidents are enjoying record-breaking compensation packages. </p>
<p>Other stories: </p>
<p>More</a> colleges may close in ailing economy - The Boston Globe</p>
<p>Tokenadult -- was just going to post that story myself.</p>
<p>Isn't a true sign of leadership asking others to do as you do, not as you "say" they should do. Cut the budget everywhere except "my paycheck".......
I was impressed that the Goldman bosses agreed to no personal bonuses this year. Granted they each have enough money to never work again and will not even notice the missing paycheck but at least their actions are a sign of good leadership.</p>
<p>It would be a mark of leadership to take a reasonable pay cut if the institution is struggling. But college presidents are often afflicted with the same entitlement disease which seems to affect CEO's of failing corporations. The consequences for the wider population (students) do not matter as long as the presidents bank account doesn't take a hit. </p>
<p>The deeper developing problem is that schools on the brink will be desperate for money, and as such may be making unholy alliances with unethical corporate people who see an open opportunity for exploitation. In short what will come for established and heretofore respectable schools who are in trouble, will be the sale of loan programs which are very unfavorable or even predatory towards students. It'll be the same kind of thing which already occurs at such as disreputable cooking or vo-tech schools. And college presidents whose schools are caught in such dire circumstances will be very easily influenced by such potential 'ways out'. </p>
<p>But in some regards, how much a college president is paid is mainly symbolic. Granted they've had the same pay inflation as CEO's. But given what a school costs to run the presidents pay is a very small portion. As such, a cut in pay is a profound symbolic and morale act, but will do little to correct for budget shortfalls. And for public academe the issue is that funding has been inadequate for a generation. And the compromises which made such a situation possibly, namely the transfer of education costs to the families via loans cannot be sustained too much longer by the populations served by these schools. </p>
<p>At the gateway school I currently work these trends are very much evidence, but to their moral credit they have not taken the low road.</p>
<p>And it appears this issue is also being covered in the "Chronicle of Higher Education" </p>
<p>Who's still buying the lies that tuition increases go toward financial aid?
It's going to presidents, administrators and fancy new buildings.
Students are paying thousands more and what do they get? 4 years in fancy dorms, followed by 10 in their parents' basement while they pay off loans.</p>
<p>
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It's going to presidents, administrators and fancy new buildings.
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</p>
<p>This is so true. Tech is getting a new building claiming to be the new "nanotechnology" building. Disregarding that we already have one that's only about 10 years old, the new building, although being touted as hosting a class 10 fab facility (really pure air), will not have much else nanotechnology related. However, its true purpose is telling because even the big shots in nanotechnology on campus aren't moving their lab space over there. It has been explained to me privately that most of the rest of the space will be administrative offices.</p>
<p>"Who's still buying the lies that tuition increases go toward financial aid?
It's going to presidents, administrators and fancy new buildings.' </p>
<p>Quite true, overall tuition costs have increased an average of 6% yearly while student aid (grants and scholarships) has declined proportionally. One of the effects of this has been the incursion of corporate funding (in this case private loans and etc) into college funding policies. </p>
<p>Under those paradigms the unnecessary trophy buildings, and exhorbinant pay for administrators would be expenditures which fit better into the agenda unduly influenced by corporate pressures. College presidents and associated cohorts rationalize such expenses as means to recruit students or serve them better. But these kinds of trends show a definite disconnect with concerns students and families have, which are largely the costs of the education rather than how shiny the building. </p>
<p>And realistically any college president who used revenue derived from corporate debt selling to intiate programs to reduce tuitions would find him or herself subject to serious (and potentially career killing) insider pressures. So it would take an exceptional person at a school willing to take major risks (or having assets to do so) to begin the move towards tuition reductions and away from unnecessary expenditures. </p>
<p>It will be necessary however, given the economic troubles and already established trends in regards to college costs..academe has come close to pricing itself out of its own market. And it's a situation which goes much deeper than overpaying college presidents. One of the ironies of it all is that many college profs can barely afford their own jobs because of the costs of the education needed to become an academic. And their students are under so much economic pressure that the profs will soon have fewer to teach...</p>
<p>Token Adult, it is the north central college in Illinois,
I was not aware there was more than one, thats cool!</p>
<p>Does anyone know which colleges are endangered?</p>
<p>I think the working assumption is that colleges that depend almost entirely on tuition revenue to keep operating are most at risk. And among those, probably the colleges with the narrowest draws of students. It was noteworthy to me that some of the example colleges in the Justin Pope AP article were tiny Christian colleges--one is a "fundamentalist" (they were proud of that term) college some of whose students I met during my college days at State U in the same state.</p>
<p>I know that Antioch is in trouble and a small college in Massachusetts closed: Bradford or Bradley, but that was a few years ago.</p>