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College Costs: A Halloween Nightmare
This Halloween, the Chronicle of Higher Education released its list of colleges and universities in the "50K" club, schools whose tuition, fees, room, and board exceed $50,000. In the case of Sarah Lawrence, at the top of the list, the sum is $57,384. Two years ago, only five schools earned this dubious honor. Last year saw 58 institutions joining the "50K" club. This year, even as median family income declines, this elite society stands 100 strong, including, for the first time, a public university, the University of California-Berkley. (The total is lower for in-state student tuition.) ACTA dissented last week when giddy headlines reported that the net cost of tuition and fees went down, due to increased scholarship money. The grim fact is that tuition is still going up, built upon years and years of over-the-top higher education spending. Three decades ago, economist and former president of Grinnell, Howard Bowen, noted that colleges raise as much money as they can and spend all that they raise. When donations don't suffice, colleges borrow to the hilt to build buildings they don't need and raise tuition to maintain programs students don't want. The system is broken, and time is running out. ACTA shares some ideas for balancing the college budget, strategies that don't involve devouring family and taxpayer resources, in "Cost Cutting." And look for more from us soon.
Posted by Michael Poliakoff on November 02, 2010 at November 2, 2010 05:50 PM
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