Comments on: ‘Tis a Privilege to Live in Colorado, as long as you don’t work in higher ed

By: Katy

Katy — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:18:41 +0000

I’m defiantly thinking about it. I’m looking into public policy and public administration programs. CU has one of the top in the nation so you never know.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:01:55 +0000

Katy–thanks for stopping by to comment. We need you back in Colorado! Maybe for grad school?

By: Katy

Katy — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 23:06:21 +0000

I ran across this article while working for the Oregon Student Association. I’m from Colorado originally and didn’t want to attend college in-state for many of the “cultural” reasons you listed. I was lucky enough to find Oregon’s only university with out of state tuition.

It’s really upsetting to be working on student issues in Oregon and not in my home state. Maybe Colorado students need to band together and form their own coalition. Once they stop drinking…

By: Rad readr

Rad readr — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 05:27:25 +0000

Well, my praise to all of you who labor behind enemy lines. One of the effects of all the public political attacks is that they divert the attention of progressive faculty — so that there is less focus on opposing the conservative forces within our universities.

By: Knitting Clio

Knitting Clio — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 21:39:44 +0000

Well, at least you don’t live in CT, where we spend $1.03 on corrections for ever $1.00 on education. . .

By: Historiann

Historiann — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 18:40:25 +0000

Anne-Marie, thanks for commenting. On the pathetic level of state support (now under 11% at my institution, I believe): I’ve wondered recently if we should have “naming rights” to our state universities auctioned off the way they gave naming rights to the new Mile High Stadium in Denver a few years ago. How about “Google University”? “General Foods University?” (Or in the case of my institution, “Archer Daniels Midland University” is more likely.)

Making state institutions tuition-dependent is immoral, in my opinion, because college educations therefore continue to be a class privilege, not equal opportunity. But, we’re in the same place you are, sadly.

By: Anne-Marie

Anne-Marie — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 18:27:47 +0000

this hits so close to home for me I have to jump in just to say so. In Oregon, we’re actually spending more on prisons than higher ed. At the land-grant school, our students contribute more to the general operating budget with their tuition dollars than the state legislature does. The label “state school” hasn’t been accurate for a long time – now even “state supported” is getting hard to say with a straight face. And then we hear complaints that 2/3 of Oregon high school grads with GPA’s in the high 3’s go out of state for college? These are smart kids, why shouldn’t they leave a place that is clearly not willing to invest in them?

By: Historiann

Historiann — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 16:51:35 +0000

GayProf–I was hoping you’d weigh in. Big Midwestern University is in a poor state with an economy that’s been struggling for 20 years, and despite recent political attacks by your Republican legislature and Affirmative Action foes, BMU is nonpareil and enjoys a great statewide, national, and international reputation. How do you do it? (And can you send more BMU grads to Colorado please?)

And, thanks for the reminder that things can always get worse…

By: GayProf

GayProf — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 16:37:41 +0000

Alas, higher ed is about the only industry that is still functioning in my state. It’s good for those of us in it, but bad for the state in general. We produce excellent students, who then immediately leave for places with actual jobs.

Chin up — I hear Arizona has an “academic freedom” law that permits university students to opt out of any reading that they find offensive. This basically means they will never have to read anything ever again.