[-empyre-] Fwd: Debt Culture--types of debt

[Lichty, Patrick]

Susan, et al.
Thanks to Brian for starting this polemic.
I've thought about this for a long time.  There are many things (at least in North America) which are evident in regards to debt and higher education.
-Probably under Reagan (it's late, some of the things I'll say are what I think are true, submitted in good faith, but I might be wrong on a couple segments) 
- Pell Grants got sliced back a lot.  In the late 20th Century, US government has been defunding the colleges and universities strongly.
-Conversely, the defunding has resulted in higher tuition rates,
- Those rates have been funded now but increasingly privately held student loans (read: higher debts due to defunding on low-cost PRIVATE student loans)
-Administrative salaries have been ballooning, creating more competition for higher paid execs.
-Benefits have been slashed by hiring adjuncts.

What we need is :
-More public funding to US higher ed,
-Salary caps to School administrators,
- Better student aid or public funding for all higher ed.
- Revolt to the loan laws.
- 10 year forgiveness ACROSS THE BOARD.

There has been a radical increase of corporatization at my institution, and it isn't pleasant.  Many institutions are performing "prioritizations" in order to realign logistics to a corporate model and to slash costs.  At Columbia, out Adjunct ratio can be up to 20:1 Adjunct to FT.

Academia in the US is in a bubble that needs to be attended to or it will probably be the next big crash in the economy, and I'm a very, very good trender.


Patrick Lichty
Assistant Professor, Interactive Arts & Media
Columbia College Chicago
916/1000 S. Wabash Ave #104
Chicago, IL USA 60605
"Some distractions demand constant practice."