One Really Expensive Hat

“And this mess is so big, And so deep and so tall, We cannot pick it up. There is no way at all!” ― Dr. Seuss, The Cat in the Hat. We all grew up hearing these words from Dr. Seuss’ classic book. Something that we have heard since our elementary years is applicable to today’s college education. Getting a college degree is crucial in today’s society, but it comes with a price, a very expensive price. The prices do vary for each individual, as we will discuss in further detail in posts to come. But right now, I would just like to focus on “the mess” or in other words rapid rise of tuition at four year universities. Here is a link to a report titled “Trends in College Spending, 1999-2009”. In the report, the section of “Trends in Employee Compensation 2002-2009” notes, “Wage and benefit gaps have widened, with public institutions spending more on benefits at the expense of wage increases, while private institutions have managed a better balance between the two. Benefit costs per full-time public employee increased by about 5 percent per year, a rate that is two to three times the growth at private institutions, and far exceeds growth in the average salary per employee at public institutions”. This is one of many main reasons why college students are becoming buried more and more in debt. I am a firm believer in compensation for teachers and professors, but there is a line drawn that perhaps has already been crossed. I feel I should mention that I am a college student going to school to be a communications professor. I see this information to be vital for you to know before I state my opinion on compensations for full time professors at four year universities as you would think my opinion on the matter would be biased, but it is not. A teacher is known to be someone who wants to help their students succeed in certain aspects of life. Education is one of the obvious aspects, but student’s finances should be a concern as well. From the information that I gathered it seems that our educational leaders have left their moral nest and have become more selfish than selfless. I am also aware that teachers do not get to make these decisions by themselves. Although, there is the argument that they are not denying the benefits that they are earning or informing their students of this injustice. In no way am I advocating for teachers to be underpaid, rather I am advocating for students to not be ripped off because professors and administrators (mostly administrators) need or want more money in their pension. The hat or cap we will wear on our graduation day will be a combination of one of greatest days of achievement and  the greatest day of failure. As we walk across the stage we will have our degree in one hand and our mound of debt in another, making the day a little more bitter than sweet. I am not here just to inform you or rant about these issues, I will post information about voting and other ways to be a more active member of society in posts to come. Stay tuned so we can pick up “this mess” and wear our caps proudly!