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More on the cost-cutting front
Kevin Carey argues in the Washington Monthly that contra the claims of the higher education establishment, colleges and universities are perfectly capable of keeping costs down and passing the savings on to students and their families. And doing so is an imperative, as the current rate of tuition growth at both public and private schools is unsustainable.
Carey demonstrates how technological advances of the kind employed by Virginia Tech's Math Emporium project have allowed considerable savings; yet tuition and fees continue to rise with no end in sight. What is the reason for this? Carey suggests the combination of big-name sports programs, multi-million-dollar recreation centers, and rankings mania inflate the price tag, while quality undergraduate instruction slides further down on the priority scale. While technology cannot be a panacea for all academic ills, it can and should be used to promote the core responsibility of the university -- preparing the next generation. Just as it has been in other industries, technology can be a cause for cost reductions, not increases. And it's time trustees paid attention.
Posted by Sandra E. Czelusniak on December 08, 2008 at December 8, 2008 04:46 PM
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