In a report issued Monday on domestic donations given last year, The Chronicle of Philanthropy found that approximately half of the largest U.S. donations, and 19 of the 50 highest donors, went all in on higher education. It would appear without argument that this is worth celebrating. But, interrupting the toast here, such praise is not possible, at least not without complaint.
In God and Man at Yale, William F. Buckley, Jr. famously argued Yale alumni should more consciously exert their influence upon the academic policy of the school from which they graduated. The traditionalist aims of such control - what labeled Buckley and his book "conservative" - could obviously be criticized by those of a different mind.
But what is surprising about The Chronicle of Philanthropy results is that half of the top U.S. donors in higher education gave their sums to colleges they never attended. Shirking tradition, wherein alumni reinvest where they went, these donors presented a more promising means of funding higher education.
This is not to say that their philanthropic strategy is optimal. Donor choices are limited based on how familiar they are with universities, a familiarity grounded in experience, prestige or convention. Donations, moreover, often go to programs created at the whim of donors, who tend to be ignorant of what schools really need.
Read More
FREED: Infrastructure failings leave Charlottesville out in the cold
By Dan Freed | 23 hours agoInstead of relying on the expected benevolence of civilians, the City should take full responsibility for the clearing of sidewalks throughout the City.
LETTER: Medical students stand in support of transgender youth
By Rachel Rezabek , Russell Hawes , Ishaan Rischie , Elianna Dunster , Kaile Maske , Zain Ahmad and Zoe Ziff | 2 days agoAs future physicians, we cannot remain silent, especially since U.Va. Health is one of the most comprehensive gender health centers in the country.
HUYNH: The Supreme Court must support civil rights litigation in Virginia and beyond
By Viet Huynh | 2 days agoThe Supreme Court must prioritize protecting the litigating power of the people against potentially tyrannical laws by their government.
