Comments for Update: 'Ole college try' comes up short before regents at http://www.theind.com , comment 1 to 8 out of 8 comments http://www.theind.com Fri, 24 May 2013 04:19:15 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1226 College student enrollment state-wide has dropped over the last couple of years. UL-Lafayette may have increased, and that's good, but overall, we don't need to keep increasing funds to higher ed at the rates of 8 and 10% each year. We should explore reducing the number of government-funded universities. There is no rhyme or reason for Louisiana to have the number of public universities as it currently does. Cut a few out, and the current "cuts" to higher ed may not even amount to cuts at all. - Info Sun, 31 May 2009 15:28:14 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1224 actually, student enrollment at ULL has increased since 2000. and any increases in funding during that time should not be seen as gifts bestowed upon the universities as much as a modest attempt by the legislature to -begin- to make the universities nationally competitive (and thus, competitive for our students). but no competitive university lacks a philosophy department. it will take much more money to restart the department 10 years from now, when the legislature realizes the error made in 2009, than it will beneficially glean from this cut. but who says the legislature and governor jindal don't care about education for Louisianans? i think they just approved a 200 million dollar expenditure to go to ULL and LSU's new creationism departments... Or was that for the departments of exorcism studies? - .... Sat, 30 May 2009 23:23:32 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1221 I challenge the Board of Regents to show exactly how much money cutting just the UL Lafayette Philosophy program is saving. My instinct is that they can't. - Show me the money... Sat, 30 May 2009 11:16:33 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1213 Nobody has said to completely cut tax dollars from higher ed. Educate yourself. Higher ed funding has increased 41% from 2000-2008, while student enrollement has dropped. Universities have continued to increase their staffs and expenses. Now we're in a recession, and the higher ed boards want to deny the LA taxpayers a tax break that was promised last year so THEY don't have to make budget adjustment like every other working family. - Information Fri, 29 May 2009 15:58:02 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1209 Yeah! What HE said! Why should we let our hard-earned money go to support our state's educational infrastructure? I don't know about you guys, but Louisiana will be -MUCH- better off if we cut education out of our tax dollars altogether. I mean, pull yourselves up with your bootstraps, people! You don't need "teachers" to get educated. You don't need "universities" and "schools" for that-- do it yourself on the interweb! We will all be -MUCH- better off when, 20 years from now, we have a strong, vibrant workforce of self-taught citizens. Oh man, I can't wait for that glorious improvement for the state... - Put Your Money Up is a Genius Fri, 29 May 2009 13:28:21 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1201 Ok. If you think the Board should keep the UL Philosophy program, then put up your money and regester to pursue the degree. The program has not been graduating enough people to warrent keeping it, especially considering...newsflash...state revenues are down because we are in a recession. If you want to put up the extra money, by all means, please do. Enough of my hard-earned income already goes to D.C. and Baton Rouge. - Put Your Money Up Fri, 29 May 2009 08:10:52 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1195 As Nietzche has indicated, the Board has lost sight of it's purpose in enabling our education to be one consistent with enlightened, intelligent, critical thought. For too long, classical (liberal) education has endured a specialization process, still underway, which has removed the common knowledge of civilization from many who do go to colleges and universities. This program MUST be restored and strengthened through increased curriculum requirements university wide, in order for our respectable standing to be maintained and strengthened as an institution we hope to be. One other culprit in these matters are the professional ratings boards of colleges and universities, which somewhat dogmatically, in their thirst for progress, have changed the standards most member institutions adhere to. This problem is not unlike that of any group-think in place at any professional association that has ties to governmental process and it's resultant policy-making apparatus. Such as the new urbanists encountered with the Planning profession and the traffic engineering and other development professions, group think informs staff members and appointed commissions, which recommend actions to the policy makers, who then dictate regulation, law, etc. That is why for 20 years now, urbanists have clawed at renewing these institutions from within. The education apparatus needs a fresh look at the goals of civilizations versus the goals of economy. These goals are not inconsistent, though, many think them to be, resulting in the short-sighted decision such as that to chop the UL Philosophy program. As planners have re-discovered, good planning is good economy. Similar is true for education, and any area of activity in our lives. As Paul Connett commented, the end result of all our activities is not about one's standard of living, but instead what your quality of life is going to be. - Jason D. Faulk Thu, 28 May 2009 17:48:29 +0100 http://www.theind.com/home/4460#comment-1191 To forget one's purpose (the Board of Regents in this case) is the commonest form of stupidity. - Fred Nietzsche Thu, 28 May 2009 13:34:24 +0100