We live in a litigious society, with insane parents willing to sue their child’s school for any number of issues. So schools have to not just lawyer up, but also create a structure that helps them defend themselves against any number of possible lawsuits. My husband works with universities, he’s a former tenured professor and a former Associate Dean, so he has a pretty good insight into how academics work. But he says what he’s seeing today is absolutely stunning. He recently had a 2 hour conversation with a administrator whose sole job is to verify study abroad programs for students at a University of California campus. Yes, the requirements are so detailed, and so numerous, that the campus had to hire a special attorney AND a special administrator just to make sure the school is compliant, and relatively lawsuit safe.
Now that’s staff IN ADDITION to the school’s own study abroad office. These guys only focus on programs other than the ones offered through the school.
Want to cut down on college administrative costs? One way is to never let your kid off campus. Certainly don’t consider study abroad.
Talk about snowflakes! And I don’t mean the kids. I mean their parents.