Maybe it is okay that the academic bubble is about to burst. After all, our colleges and Universities seem to have lost their way, teaching gender studies, minority (majority) studies, leftist viewpoints and the never ending politically correct mission creep of sustainability, equality, and socialism. Is the removal of DACA – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals going to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in academia? It very well might be. Let’s talk.
There was an interesting piece on NPR worth listening to titled: “California State University Chancellor Raises Concerns About End Of DACA,” part of the ‘All Things Considered’ venue (4 minutes, 14 seconds long). The piece was on the air on September 6, 2017. During the interview the California State University system Chancellor Timothy White, he stated:
“Well, it would make it so several thousand of our students and several hundred of our employees would lose the status that DACA has provided. And for some, that would mean they would drop out of school out of fear. For others, it would mean that they would not be able to get a job or have the sort of ability to function in society once they earn their college degree. So we’re actually deeply disappointed in the president’s action and are working strongly with, now, our congressional members to create legislation to reverse this.”
Personally, I bet it is much higher than that, I bet it’s at least 5,000 students at 500 University employees. First, why is the University hiring Illegal Aliens ahead of US Citizens? Second, are these 5,000 students borrowing monies (student loans) for their over-priced tuition? You know, college is FREE in Mexico, but I guess if they don’t pay back the student loans its FREE here too, for them only as all the citizen college students can’t get out of their student loans ever, or those on Student VISAs have to pay in exorbitant college tuition fees in advance often 3-times the normal rates. Next is this issue with Cal Grant program – who do you think pays for that?
Meanwhile, most of the University professor pension funds around the country are in trouble (underfunded) and their pay keeps increasing, and the Universities continue to hire more administrators to their already bureaucratic and top-heavy brain-washing institutions.
Now you might ask, why on Earth does this author (me) care? Well, I am a taxpayer. And, I understand the issues of social safety nets, but our taxes are paid by US citizens for our benefits, not to redistribute to folks who are in our country illegally. Yes, I understand the debate; “it’s not their fault, their parents brought them here at a young age, and this is the only country they know.” Understood, but that is not my fault, nor should it be my problem just because I am a white male.
It seems now we are in a Catch-22. You see, if we send all the DACA students back, they will not pay their student loans, and will finish their education in Mexico, where it is free, which might be enough to trigger a bubble burst in the student loan market causing severely decreased enrollment as no one will be able to get a student loan in the future; citizen or not. Fewer students means tuition revenues will decrease, layoffs of staff and professors will cause poor education, larger classrooms, and bankruptcy to many University systems nationwide. And, mind you, the academic bubble will eventually burst as it is “unsustainable” anyway, but this may accelerate the time to drive off that cliff.
It’s too bad academia got hijacked by leftist political forces, now it’s time that the pendulum swings back to some sense of normalcy. Maybe it’s going to take a big hit to the system to force a little common sense back into the University system, maybe this DACA reversal might be that event that pivots to a more reality based place of higher learning?