Saturday, October 3, 2009

Frank D. Yeary and Robert J. Birgeneau: New model needed to keep public universities public


Frank D. Yeary and Robert J. Birgeneau: New model needed to keep public universities public:

"Almost 150 years ago, in an effort to better serve a growing nation, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Land Grant Act, which gave struggling states federal land with which they could generate revenue to build colleges. The result of that bold action is a national resource: a structure for higher education that is admired, and copied, around the globe in places such as Japan, Germany and Canada.

We are the only country to have both private and public universities of world renown. Sadly, this amalgam of great public and private research and teaching universities is at risk as economically struggling states progressively disinvest in public higher education."