Dr. Richard Vedder, Distinguished Professor of Economics Emeritus at Ohio University and Director of the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, authored a Forbes column on “A Tale Of Two Universities.”
Dr. Richard Vedder
The University of Chicago is a great university, while something called the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (a group of 17 schools) clearly is not. Recent statements from the presidents of both institutions helps us understand why.
Mark E. Ojakian, the head of the Connecticut schools, issued a statement that personifies much that is wrong with American higher education. He said:
“It is incumbent on us…to protect…the safe inclusive learning environment on our campuses….The CSCU community is made up of various races, ages, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientation, gender identities and expressions, nationalities, physical abilities, and political perspectives. We value our diversity….We are a system that greatly values academic freedom and freedom of expression but this …requires shared responsibility….We do not and will not accept discourse that belittles or demeans those among us.”
Contrast that with Robert Zimmer, president of the University of Chicago, writing in the Wall Street Journal. “Free speech is at risk at the very institution where it should be assured: the university….Students grasp the complexity of…deriving meaning from evidence of multiple forms. They learn to imagine alternatives…to question the accepted wisdom…..questioning and challenge must flourish…. Universities cannot be viewed as a sanctuary for comfort but rather as a crucible for confronting ideas…”
…As an economist, I am always looking for evidence from markets. Relevant here is the labor market for recent graduates of the University of Chicago versus those at one of the Connecticut State system schools. According to the College Scorecard website of the U.S. Department of Education, using IRS provided data, the “salary after attending” at the University of Chicago averages $62,800, almost 50 percent higher than major CSCU system schools like Central, Western, or Southern Connecticut State University (salaries around $42,000 or $43,000, depending on the campus). There is far more than free speech at work here (the Chicago kids are smarter and more prepared academically to begin with), but at the very minimum it does not appear that a diet of lively, free and uncensored inquiry has deterred employers from hiring the graduates at Chicago.
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