Friday, July 19, 2002

Public Universities and Pest Control

On my annual trip to the backwoods of Minnesota this year, I tried out a new, ostensibly healthier bug spray, to avoid the perils of DEET. Compounded of essential oils of geranium, citronella and lemongrass, the spray certainly smelled delicious when applied to wrists and ankles. And it sure made me feel environmentally sound. But there is no placebo effect when it comes to the mosquitoes of northern Minnesota and I was driven indoors by their blood-thirsty attacks. In fact, I think the skeeters positively relished the taste of my eco-friendly repellent - “Oh yummy,” they buzzed, “A Positive with a subtle bouquet of citronella!”

So I found myself sitting indoors, contemplating the lake and the meaning of the work I’d left behind. I suppose this is part of the function of vacations - an emptying out of the mind’s clutter - brushing off the swarming yellow Post-It notes of working life.

As an academic in a state university, I take it for granted that my work contributes to the well-functioning of society. As a professional philosopher, too, I fancy myself a voice of conscientious criticism: in Socrates’ image, as a gadfly stinging the rump of a complacent state. Alas, our political paymasters in Indianapolis evidently see me and my conspecifics rather as parasites sucking the taxpayers dry.

“Well,” I ask myself, “Why should Michiana taxpayers - or any others - support public universities?” It’s easy enough to defend public elementary and secondary education. If basic education is a fundamental human right, needed to support an individual’s life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, then states should ensure all children have access to schooling. Indeed, the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child names basic education as a universal human right which member states should provide free to children - although, like Somalia, the US has yet to ratify this treaty. Further, democratic states have a vital interest in raising children to sustain the practices of a democratic society. The public school classroom is where the next generation learns the skills, knowledge and dispositions needed by citizens of a democracy.

It’s harder to see why taxpayers should support the existence of state universities. After all, adults should already have received their training in whatever the basics are supposed to be. I stare out at the lake, swat a rogue mosquito and ponder on.

If the only benefit of a university education is to the graduate, it is hard to see why other taxpayers should subsidise that student’s route to success. According the Census Bureau, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree increases expected earnings by nearly $1 million over an average working life, as compared to a highschool diploma. But investment in public universities also contributes to the local economy overall. A well-educated workforce is a source of entrepreneurs and a magnet to draw other employers to an area.

Another thought occurs to me. Since a college degree is a prerequisite for most well-paid or high-status jobs today, making good on the American promise of equal opportunity requires that any one can try for a college degree, even if she or he is not rich or well-connected. To the extent that public universities make higher education accessible to anyone with motivation and academic potential, they are helping to maintain a level playing field in America.

“There’s more,” I muse. The university has long served as an open forum for debate, disciplined by scholarly standards. Public universities, in particular, offer a protected, neutral ground for discussion among different ethical, religious and political viewpoints. This is especially important right now, when it seems that any questioning of government policy is liable to be deemed “unpatriotic” - rather than celebrated as an expression of the American passion for free speech and inquiry. “A nest of gadflies, indeed!” I mutter, and scratch at another mosquito bite.

Then I cheer up, reflecting that public universities do quirky and useful research, too. North Carolina State University has just patented an insect repellent, which is more effective and less toxic than DEET. It’s based on tomatoes.

For Michiana Chronicles, reapplying the citronella, this is Louise Collins.

Broadcast by Louise Collins on July 19, 2002
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