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This is a bad take. Young people were put in an impossible position by a public university system that was forced into re-opening due to chronic under-funding from the state legislature. You want to know where the buck stops? That's where. https://twitter.com/dailytarheel/status/1296534650031165443
Public universities in NC had no choice but to hold in-person classes -- that decision was made by the university system, which oversees all 16 public universities in North Carolina.
And the system didn't really have a choice either. Due to decades of declining funding, universities have had to rely increasingly on student fees (as well as tuition) in order to make ends meet.
(If you missed this thread yesterday, it's an excellent overview of the systemic issues at play. It is, in short, a mess.) https://twitter.com/BretDevereaux/status/1295909929228873728
At any rate, this is why it costs about 300% more in tuition and fees for an in-state student to attend my alma mater (W&M, which is a state school in Virginia) than it did when I went there in the early 90s. (That far outstrips wage growth, household income, etc.)
Since states don't value higher education any more, they've slashed uni funding big time. And universities have had to try to find that money somewhere.
In addition, folks often pick universities based on their on-campus amenities -- fancy dorms, gyms, or dining halls -- all of which are paid for by on-campus fees. Nobody on campus means no income for those amenities -- but unis still have to pay for them.
Anyway, the TL;DR version is that state legislatures have underfunded universities, effectively forcing universities to try to bring students on campus in order to stay afloat financially.
That's obviously not working very well, and there will be significant consequences for universities and their staffs.
I'm guessing that we will see a few schools, particularly smaller ones, actually go under in the next year. Maybe more than a few.
I'm guessing that we will see a few schools, particularly smaller ones, actually go under in the next year. Maybe more than a few.
One last point that is absolutely critical------
This would all be moot if our federal government hadn't proven itself utterly incompetent at rolling out and enforcing a meaningful public health campaign in regard to COVID-19.
This would all be moot if our federal government hadn't proven itself utterly incompetent at rolling out and enforcing a meaningful public health campaign in regard to COVID-19.
