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Oh, I don’t know. Programs can need a lot of funding they don’t always get from the university itself, and donors - many of whom are dreaded alumni bankers - are often quite important.</p>
<p>For example, the Joukowskys at Brown recently donated an 8 figure gift (i.e. an endowment for a single department equivalent to that of many LACs) to found an archaeology institute. That money is allowing it to leapfrog past more established programs in the field, and I don’t doubt that it will soon leave the more poorly funded programs (especially at publics) in its dust.</p>
<p>One wonders if many departments would rather turn out one or two less adjunct professors and another banker or two instead. ;)</p>