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You're not going to a university to join a spa.
President Obama to a group of students
There should be a more Spartan aspect to education that is more conducive to learning. You are looking at a culture driven by Hollywood and vulgarity, people who are more interested in hot tubs than in what goes on in the classroom. Are we spending on education or a cruise for entertainment?
Leon Botstein, president of Bard College
Both of us teach at the College of William and Mary. Like most schools, ours is not shy about touting its amenities. The Webpage that advertises the college's housing and dining options begins with, “Wireless and Starbucks? Thomas Jefferson never had it this good.” The promotion urges potential students to “forget everything you think you know about college food” and then provides tantalizing descriptions of Brazilian roast pork, spicy arugula pasta, and sushi prepared to order.
Advertising of this sort is a double-edged public-relations sword. Colleges and universities clearly want to impress potential students with their amenities. But descriptions like these seem to confirm Botstein's worst fears about Hollywood and vulgarity. Moreover, they play into the hands of critics who believe that those amenities are important drivers of skyrocketing college costs.
Robert Archibald is Chancellor Professor of Economics at the College of William and Mary, where he has been chair of the economics department, director of the Thomas Jefferson Program in Public Policy, and interim dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
David Feldman is a professor of economics and public policy at the College of William and Mary. Their book, Why Does College Cost so Much?, is available from Oxford University Press.
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