Editor in chief: Jack Clifford
Associate Editors: Rebecca Newell, Jeff Smith
Newsroom: (541)346-5511
Room 300, Erb Memorial Union
P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403
E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu
Tuesday
August 8,2000
Volume 102, Issue 14
Emerald
Where’dyou get your diploma, a box of CrackerJacks?
“Obtain a prosperous future, mon
ey earning power and the admira
tion of all.”
So begins the e-mail I receive at
least once a week, sent under the
subject line “University Diplomas.”
How, you ask, can a person attain all
of the above, basically a short list of
those qualities each student likely
strives for by attending the Universi
ty? (OK, the “admiration of all” part
is a bit of a stretch.)
Simple.
One quick phone call to a business
in south Florida — at least that’s
what the number’s area code reflects
— and you can receive a diploma
from “prestigious non-accredited
universities based on your present
knowledge and life experience.” The
e-mail goes on to state that there are
“no required tests, classes, books or
interviews” for bachelor’s, master’s,
MBA and doctorate diplomas, avail
able in the field of your choice.
No one is turned down, confiden
tiality is assured and lines are open
24 hours day, seven days a week, in
cluding Sundays and holidays.
Whoa, the joy of instant gratifica
tion.
With summer commencement ex
ercises scheduled for Saturday,
maybe now is the time to assess ex
actly what students are getting out of
their college experiences. Although I
will not be receiving my diploma
this weekend — as a fourth-year jun
ior, the once-ridiculed phrase “six
year plan” is suddenly sounding
more realistic —1,129 degree candi
dates are eligible to participate in the
ceremonies. The awards include 719
bachelor’s degrees, 289 master’s de
grees, 61 doctoral degrees, 57 certifi
cate recipients and three doctor of
jurisprudence degrees.
So, are these people stupid? With
the push of a few buttons, they could
have had a diploma in their hand by
now and be well on their way to that
“prosperous future.” Uh, yeah, right.
“College is a tremendous experi
ence you keep drawing on for the
rest of your life,” said Karen
Sprague, biology professor and vice
provost for undergraduate studies,
in between laughter after hearing
about the offer from “University
Diplomas.”
As a University adminis
trator, Sprague, of course,
is required to toe the com
pany line. But, she makes
good arguments for taking
the stay-in-school path,
instead of trying the
wing-it approach.
There’s the opportu
nity to debate important
issues in a classroom set
ting, she said, and interacting with
people who can lay out the logic of
certain points of view. Your stance
on issues gets shaken up in the
process, which only adds to the
learning process.
“For a great many people some
thing special happens during the
pursuit of a college education,”
Sprague said.
1 hat pursuit ot happiness comes .
at a rather daunting cost, of course,
and the price is escalating. N.
Tuition and fee rates for in-state res- \
idents at the University have in
creased more than 225 percent in the
past 10 years, according to the Oregon
University System. The difference in
annual costs between the 1988-89 and
1998-99 school years rose from $1,649
to $3,771 for undergraduates. For
non-residents the financial burden
jumped from $4,517 to $12,555 dur
ing the same time period.
That’s a lot of special somethings.
It should be noted, however, that the
U.S. Department of Education re
ports the average college costs for
undergraduates at the nation’s pub
nc institutions run
about $8,000, in
cluding room and
board expenses.
So, what are we
getting for our
Grover Clevelands
and our Ben
Franklins?
According to in
formation on the
National Center for
Education Statistics
Web site, the medi
an annual income in
1998 of year-round,
full-time workers
aged 25 years and
older, with a bache
lor s degree, was $51,405 for men
and $36,559 for women. Those
workers with just a high school de
gree skimped by on $31,477 and
$22,780, respectively.
Beyond the higher influx of dead
presidents, what are students really
getting for their investment, though?
Not much, if you believe William
Beaver, who is a professor of social
science at Robert Morris College in
Pennsylvania. The good professor
took time out of his busy teaching
schedule to attack everything that is
higher education in the summer is
sue of American Outlook, a quarterly
magazine published bv the Hudson
Institute, a public
policy research or
ganization in Indi
anapolis.
Beaver wrote that
higher education
has become “less of
a haven for the elite
and the academical
ly qualified and
more of an expected
destination for
everyone.” Institu
tions, facing a possi
ble decline in en
rollment when the
last of the baby
boomers entered
college in the 1980s,
responded with publicity cam
paigns, lower standards and scholar
ships, all to attract what he called
less-qualified students. When the
courseload became too difficult for
those students, he continued,
col
leges
relied on
remedial
courses and in
flated grades.
He makes col-.
lege sound like a
gussied up ver
sion of the
WWF, but how
accurate are
Beaver’s disparage
ments?
Sprague said that
Y Beaver s viewpoint is worth
while to consider, mainly be
cause it forces institutions to think
about what they’re offering and forces
students to think about what they’re
getting out of their four year — or
more — commitment. She also ex
pressed concern about declining stan
dards at the higher education level.
In response to his opinion that
parents and high-school counselors
emphasize getting a college educa
tion too much, and overlook the pos
sible fact that a student might find
higher pay scales as skilled, industri
al workers, Sprague agreed.
“I know my plumber makes more
than I do,” she said. “If simply mak
ing money is your sole concern, then
maybe you should go that way.”
Sprague did get in a plug for the
higher education system, lest you
think she is falling down on the job.
She related a story about her friend
who went to school, received his
college degree, but in the end found
that barn-building was his true pas
sion.Without that intermediate step
of the university experience, howev
er, she doubts her friend would have
the same perspective on life.
In a very long and circuitous man
ner, the point of this commentary is
to prompt you, as a student, to think
about what you are doing on this
campus. Whether you are graduating
this weekend or whether you are
ready to scrap it all and become a
carpenter, you have choices.
A college degree is certainly to be
valued, but it isn’t necessarily all
that and a bag of chips.
Especially if it is just a phone call
away.
Jack Clifford is the Oregon Daily Emerald’s
editor in chief.
i ( College is a tremen
dous experience you keep
drawing on for the rest of
your life ...Fora great
many people something
special happens during
the pursuit of a college
education.
Karen Sprague
vice provost for
undergraduate studies
Quoted
“The guy just came
out of the crowd
and grabbed it. I
guess I just had
time to think,
‘What’s going on?'”
—Linda Colcott,
who was carrying
the Olympic torch
through Frankston
in southeast Mel
bourne when a
man jumped out
of the crowd and
grabbed it.OSA To
day, Aug 7.
“Sometimes you
don’t need to be
told if you’re right
or wrong, you
don’t need any
thing fixed, you
just want to be
heard.”
—Scott Lubbock,
a trained drugand
alcohol counselor
who recently
opened ‘‘All Ears.”
Located above Eu
gene’s L&L Market,
Scott will listen to
whatever a person
wants to talk
about The service
is $5. The Register
Guard, Aug 7.
“i don't think any
one can calculate
the effect of hav
ing a Jew on the
ticket. If Joe
lieberman were
Episcopalian it
would be a slam
dunk”
—EdRendell, De
mocratic Party
chairman, said last
week, in response
to the possible se
lection of Lieber
man as Gore’s run
ning mate. Gore
announced Mon
day that Lieber
man is his choice.
USA Today, Aug 7.
Word
If you could choose
anyone as president
of the United States,
who would it be and
why?
“[Green Party candidate]
Ralph Nader because I
think he’d be a good presi
dent. I like what he stands
for and his honesty. I think
he’d really care about the
people of this country.”
—Junior Tova Moore
journalism
“I would choose [George W.]
Bush. I think that he cap
tures and articulates a polit
ical movement greater than
any other politician today. ”
—John Adams
political science
s
“ Ralph Nader because he
represents all the values I
stand for: human rights,
civil rights, anti-corporation
and the environment. I’d
also vote for him because I
want the Green Party to get
5 percent of the vote so at
the next election they get
funding. ”
— Rachelle Hancock
undeclared
“Tom Green because he’s a
funny guy and I’d think
he’d have a great platform.
He’d make the news inter
esting. He’s my hero, I’d
vote for him any day.”
—Junior Gabe Silverman
multi-media
“Larry Flynt because out of
everyone in the U.S., he
probably upholds the con
stitution the most. He
fights for free speech
whether people like what
he’s saying or not.”
— Senior Christy Lardy
art history