That old saying that 'there is no free lunch' is pretty much true nowadays. I remember the university providing free Domino's pizzas for registration workers; but the hours were long and the complaints were many.
At one time someone with an internet connection could read major newspapers' web sites gratis; now many of them either require you to subscribe or give you a restricted number of free views. The local paper, the Press-Sentinel, gives no free peeks; but the Times-Daily grants ten per month. Naturally, the major newspapers like the New York Times or the Washington Post limit the number of free views.
But what if you pursue a link to a newspaper not normally read by you? Then, it's a free ride! It's not like you're going to visit the Des Moines Register or the Boston Globe more than once or twice a month.
Yahoo! It's like getting away with something. Maybe there's still the unbridled teen left in me. I hope so. I'm an outlaw at heart; and at my age reading articles free from papers that would like to charge will do it.
Another little story: The Times-Daily (referred too as the Tee Dee by students) would leave piles of free papers on the university campus in order to inflate circulation numbers. These papers served admirably as packing materials.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Yes to Allowing University Athletes to Form Unions!
A recent development is that the National Labor Relations Board has reacted positively to the notion that the athletes of Northwestern University can unionize, and negotiate with the university as to how they might be treated. They opened the door for the College Athletes Players Association to be voted on by secret ballot as a collective bargaining agent.
In fact, the NLRB has asserted that they are employees of the university!
This can potentially be a game-changer in big time athletics! Right now, the Division I universities are making out like bandits when it comes to the revenues from some of their sports programs. Maybe the time for athletes' rights has come; they work (my choice of words is deliberate) anywhere from 30 to 50 hours per week while the season is in force, Also, there is the rather lame concept that the NCAA has fostered regarding the student-athlete that seems to play into an excuse to subject these young people to such abuses.
There is a kind of institutional peonage that big-time college athletics has become.
Of course, Northwestern University has served notice that it plans to appeal; and the NCAA has issued a statement deploring the NLRB ruling. No surprise here.
In my opinion, university athletes should be treated as salaried employees. They should be provided fringe benefits, including health insurance, unemployment insurance, and other expectations that go with the modern workplace environment.
In short, the athletic scholarship is not enough. It's time for a square deal.
Yes, Southeastern Conference; this should mean you too!
In fact, the NLRB has asserted that they are employees of the university!
This can potentially be a game-changer in big time athletics! Right now, the Division I universities are making out like bandits when it comes to the revenues from some of their sports programs. Maybe the time for athletes' rights has come; they work (my choice of words is deliberate) anywhere from 30 to 50 hours per week while the season is in force, Also, there is the rather lame concept that the NCAA has fostered regarding the student-athlete that seems to play into an excuse to subject these young people to such abuses.
There is a kind of institutional peonage that big-time college athletics has become.
Of course, Northwestern University has served notice that it plans to appeal; and the NCAA has issued a statement deploring the NLRB ruling. No surprise here.
In my opinion, university athletes should be treated as salaried employees. They should be provided fringe benefits, including health insurance, unemployment insurance, and other expectations that go with the modern workplace environment.
In short, the athletic scholarship is not enough. It's time for a square deal.
Yes, Southeastern Conference; this should mean you too!
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Why the Oxford Comma Is Important
When listing a series of words in a sentence, separate each noun by commas.
As this illustration indicates failure to do so changes the meaning:
As this illustration indicates failure to do so changes the meaning:
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Sunday, February 2, 2014
Problems of Universities
Well, I've been retired from professing for over three years now; and I pretty kept my peace about the general state of university life. Admittedly, my perspective is limited; I was employed full-time at only two state universities. One for 38 years.
There are a lot of things that are being done well; some not so much.
The biggest problem that immediately confronts potential students is the cost. Costs of tuition and other expenses have greatly outstripped what might be expected due to general inflation. And, let's face it: some university towns tend to milk students for what they're worth on rent, food, and other amenities. Therefore, they come out of universities with massive debts: possibly as much as $100,000 dollars! How about being saddled with that at such a young age?
But universities don't keep costs down, either. Some of that is self-defense due to decreasing levels of state assistance per annum. After all, the money must come from somewhere. But there's also a lot of baggage.
One of the things I've noticed is the general proliferation of administrative-level personnel (oops, human resources!). There's a lot of these persons that are involved in decision-making and they have dramatically increased the overhead of many universities. And the salaries! While it's reasonable to expect that a dean or a vice-president should be paid more than a professor, some of them draw fantastic salaries. Not to mention the presidents or chancellors! The former President of Ohio State drew $1.9 million a year!
But when it comes to actual instruction, more and more class sections are taught by adjunct (part-time) instructors. These are paid very poorly by comparison. As a matter of fact, full-time tenure-track faculty positions are declining as these carry more of a load. And, what makes it worse, they are given no health insurance or retirement benefits. Universities should be ashamed of this, if they were capable of shame.
Not to mention how teaching assistants are trained!
Athletics, of course, is overemphasized. But it was also the case 40 years ago too.
And there are fraternities, some of which are known for their boorish behavior. When will these relics of the past go away?
Another problem is legislative interference. State legislatures are the source of funding, and they sometimes tack on their own agendas. For example, at one institutions I had been employed many years ago, all students were required to take a course, Americanism Versus Communism. (Guess what side they were supposed to take.)
The American university system is perhaps the glory of our education system, especially on the graduate level. But these aspects are real problems.
There are a lot of things that are being done well; some not so much.
The biggest problem that immediately confronts potential students is the cost. Costs of tuition and other expenses have greatly outstripped what might be expected due to general inflation. And, let's face it: some university towns tend to milk students for what they're worth on rent, food, and other amenities. Therefore, they come out of universities with massive debts: possibly as much as $100,000 dollars! How about being saddled with that at such a young age?
But universities don't keep costs down, either. Some of that is self-defense due to decreasing levels of state assistance per annum. After all, the money must come from somewhere. But there's also a lot of baggage.
One of the things I've noticed is the general proliferation of administrative-level personnel (oops, human resources!). There's a lot of these persons that are involved in decision-making and they have dramatically increased the overhead of many universities. And the salaries! While it's reasonable to expect that a dean or a vice-president should be paid more than a professor, some of them draw fantastic salaries. Not to mention the presidents or chancellors! The former President of Ohio State drew $1.9 million a year!
But when it comes to actual instruction, more and more class sections are taught by adjunct (part-time) instructors. These are paid very poorly by comparison. As a matter of fact, full-time tenure-track faculty positions are declining as these carry more of a load. And, what makes it worse, they are given no health insurance or retirement benefits. Universities should be ashamed of this, if they were capable of shame.
Not to mention how teaching assistants are trained!
Athletics, of course, is overemphasized. But it was also the case 40 years ago too.
And there are fraternities, some of which are known for their boorish behavior. When will these relics of the past go away?
Another problem is legislative interference. State legislatures are the source of funding, and they sometimes tack on their own agendas. For example, at one institutions I had been employed many years ago, all students were required to take a course, Americanism Versus Communism. (Guess what side they were supposed to take.)
The American university system is perhaps the glory of our education system, especially on the graduate level. But these aspects are real problems.
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
This is bad news to bring up during football season, but there is increasing awareness of possible long-term neurological consequences of repeated concussion-type injuries. Formerly, these were associated with boxers, and was at one time referred to as traumatic encaphalopathy of pugulists -- in other words, being punch-drunk.
This diagnosis can only be made post-mortem; but here's a list of players who had confirmed or suspected diagnoses:
List
Brett Favre has stated that he would not let his son play football; and I respect his decision as a loving and conscientious father.
I wonder if we should reconsider its prominence in American culture. Are we doing thing the right thing by encouraging this potential form of chronic brain pathology? They need to radically revise how the game is played, or discourage it if this persists.
Severe amnesia problems are not normal in 40-year-olds. I hope stiffer penalties for head shots or other potentially dangerous hits will do it. But we may need to go further.
Especially for high school or college football.
Some cheerleading competitions have forbidden the use of standing pyramids or other dangerous gymnastics. If that sport can do it, certainly football also can.
This diagnosis can only be made post-mortem; but here's a list of players who had confirmed or suspected diagnoses:
List
Brett Favre has stated that he would not let his son play football; and I respect his decision as a loving and conscientious father.
I wonder if we should reconsider its prominence in American culture. Are we doing thing the right thing by encouraging this potential form of chronic brain pathology? They need to radically revise how the game is played, or discourage it if this persists.
Severe amnesia problems are not normal in 40-year-olds. I hope stiffer penalties for head shots or other potentially dangerous hits will do it. But we may need to go further.
Especially for high school or college football.
Some cheerleading competitions have forbidden the use of standing pyramids or other dangerous gymnastics. If that sport can do it, certainly football also can.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Seriously Inappropriate School Play
A Spanish school staged a play in which some of their students played camouflage-wearing Spanish soldiers invading Gibraltar, and shooting other students playing Brits. Suppose the Brits in the play didn't die according to script? Kids would rather be on the winning side.
I remember another Spanish-speaking nation trying an actual invasion of a British-owned island and it did not turn out very well.
Apparently, we're not the only country with dumb ideas.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/gibraltar/10339883/Spanish-school-stages-invasion-of-Gibraltar.html
I remember another Spanish-speaking nation trying an actual invasion of a British-owned island and it did not turn out very well.
Apparently, we're not the only country with dumb ideas.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/gibraltar/10339883/Spanish-school-stages-invasion-of-Gibraltar.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)