Every major university claims to celebrate diversity. And they are clearly sincere if we restrict the term to race, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. However, if we include philosophical orientation and political party identification, such claims are decidedly disingenuous. Conservatives and classical liberals are rarely welcome — and Republicans are scarce. “The jury on Marxism […]
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America needs a well-educated citizenry. Along with good character and discipline, a quality education is required to succeed in today’s economy. Most suburban schools, like those in Bozeman, perform well. Bozeman High boasts SAT scores well above the national average, regularly produces National Merit Scholars, and sends graduates to top-flight colleges. I occasionally guest lecture […]
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Some measures of university success are clear: SAT scores of students enrolled, passing rates for professional certification, and the win-loss records of sports teams. Others are murky: morale of students and faculty, and ambition toward excellence. One commonly misunderstood feature involves the overhead rate for sponsored research. Grant writers must incorporate indirect costs — IDCs […]
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My wife, Professor Ramona Marotz-Baden, Ph.D., is retiring after a 35-year teaching career. Twenty-seven were at MSU. She had offers at Ivy and Big Ten schools. Her college at the University of Minnesota named Ramona one of its “Top 100 Graduates of the First 100 Years.” This prompts a question: Why does Montana State attract […]
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On March 14, the Wall Street Journal ran a 12-page special on the NCAA Basketball Tournament. The feature story by Stefan Fatsis, “Where Are They Now,” followed the post-tournament career of Mississippi State University’s 1996 Final Four team. (It ranged from prison to college administration.) Fatsis described tensions inherent to melding academic and athletic goals. […]
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Please don’t impose Tom Wolfe’s portrayal of licentious behavior at his fictive Dupont U on your children. His description of life at America’s top schools, I Am Charlotte Simmons, is captivating even when he describes appalling behavior. Trust me, college is not that hedonistic and undisciplined. Fortunately, neither are universities as monolithically “progressive” and politically […]
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My friends are not in Bozeman by accident. As they contemplated relocation, a key consideration was the quality of their children’s public schools. By any objective measure, ours are excellent. SAT scores at Bozeman High are well above the national average. Each year it produces a number of National Merit Scholars and sends several graduates […]
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Both the Jeffersonian Democrat and the libertarian have an interest in fostering a moral society. The late liberal Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan lamented in a 1993 essay: “[O]ver the past generation…we have been redefining deviancy so as to exempt much conduct previously stigmatized, and also quietly raising the ‘normal’ level in categories where behavior is […]
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MSU is producing a five-year “Vision Statement.” The goal is to plan and develop three university-wide priorities: Recruitment, Retention, and Quality Enhancements. “All of these priorities are essential to providing access and success for our students.” My focus below is on recruitment of out-of-state students. Here is the context. Across America, states pay an ever-declining […]
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Public school funding challenges communities across the nation. My hometown of Bozeman, Montana, is no exception. Our community highly values education and understands good schools are a key ingredient for social and economic progress. Like many others, our school board is deciding how to trim its budget in reaction to reduced state funding. The school […]
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