Today we had a “block party” on campus and there was tons of food. We had about 200 students come out and eat but we had food for about 400-500 students. So imagine…..fresh food that was prepared by “dining services” for 400 students and leftovers that had not even been touched or uncovered. Instead of donating the food to one of the homeless shelters or community centers with food banks, they threw it away. When I approached the manager she expressed that she too understood our concern and that she wished they could give the food away, but they could not. As an auxiliary service that represents a state agency, they are not allowed to donate or give away anything paid for with state funds….although they “donated” the food to our student organizations for the event….This situation bothered me because of the issue of “liability”that kept coming up within my conversations with the staff as well as students and others. What kind of society have we become? We are willing to be wasteful to save ourselves from being liable for “potential” risk instead of helping others. We talk sustainability; it’s the new fad…yet these types of situations that I am sure occur daily all over the nation are just swept under the rug. What kind of integrity are we portraying and displaying and modeling for young people like those college students who literally stood there and watched pounds of perfectly good food get tossed in large garbage cans? They are our future and yet all they continue to learn is what not to do in order to keep them safe and free of litigation. We are paying an awfully high price (whether we know it or not) for this “freedom” that we have…..The true price of freedom is expensive if we look at how much avoiding liability is costing us….

I read an article today about the rise in immigration of wealthy Chinese citizens to the US. The top 2 reasons that all of the research identified were better healthcare and education. Seems kind of ironic when you think about the way our media depicts both of these systems. From the “insider” perspective we are constantly bombarded with images, messages, and news stories about the failing state on American education at all levels, as well as a incerasingly low quality and affordable healthcare epidemic. It leads me to wonder if the media in other countries are portraying our conditions to be very different. What exactly is the “outside-in” perspective?

Yhr article also stated that 27% of the wealthiest Chinese have already migrated to the US, with 47% thinking about it and the rest either moving to or currently residing in Canada. This is very intestine considering our largely criticized “western culture”, political issues, and economy.

Still it doesn’t negate the fact that we do have some definite issues to work out with education, healthcare and other systems in this country. Perhaps we should begin by being a little more positive and recognizing that we are still seen by others as a nation of opportunity and promise which can become increasingly better with change.

SO… the ever popular debate about college athletes being paid is back and as usual….my opinion has NOT changed. I do not believe they should be paid. That is my wholehearted opinion that is based on my own experiences, perceptions, knowledge of research about the subject and a little bias which I am not afraid to admit that I have.

Not all athletes receive full scholarships but across the board the amounts total percentages that are substaintially larger than academic or any other kind of scholarships. While I understand that most are not able to have a job during season (and sometimes off) there is still the summer time and they usually still have more financial aid money (some of which comes directly back to them in refunds for spending and/or saving) as well as the same opportunities as others for other types of financial aid.

A scholarship is like a contract; a promise to pay a service to an institution in exchange for a decrease or total expense paid education. There contract should not be any different than others. If the terms of the contract do not stipulate pay such as a stipend or salary (like that of assistantships and fellowships) then the pay comes in other ways. Gaining education (which often includes room & board) is compensation.

Many people believe that institutions of higher education and athletic departments exploit athletes (I can get with that claim for sure) but even if they receive money for jerseys, tickets, other swag and paraphernalia, it is not much different than academia where the school benefits and receives money for research and accolades that students gain in their areas or field of study and expertise. I believe the racial aspect comes into play and draws many people to feel emotional and personally invested in this topic and issue (and it is a problem & issue) but….one must look at all of the factors involved and when I weigh them based on my perception, I still feel the same. An athletes compensation or “pay” should be the investment that is made in their education. They can take it or leave it but just like with all things, it is a choice and they have it to make. If there scholarship money is not enough then they need to resort to other means of financing their education just like all other students or perspective students (grants, loans, other scholarships, work study (if applicable) and working (when and if they can). Being a college athlete should not be a 4 year (sometimes plus) career for anyone.