COLLEGE ANYONE ?

In 1997 my daughter graduated from high school. After considering several colleges and universities she chose to attend Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA. At the time I was somewhat concerned and disappointed that she chose not to attend a California college or university and take advantage of her resident status. I had a lot to learn and my daughter would be my teacher.

Apparently for a host of reasons more and more California college students are not able to complete their course work in the customary four years; but need additional years of college time before graduation. Of course this additional time means additional expense. My daughter assured me that even with the added expense of being an out of state student at Western Washington, the overall cost would be less than attending college in California because she would graduate in four years.

One needs to know that my daughter has a common sense streak that many mature adults would envy and a frugal side that is the basis of many family stories. As a result, since she guaranteed completion of all her course work in four years and graduation, she left California for Bellingham in the early Fall of 1997 and as promised, she graduated from Western Washington in 2001.

As a result of Lauren's experiences attending college we were more prepared for the college experiences of our sons. One started at UC Santa Cruz and after his sophomore year transferred to Oberlin College Music Conservatory. Another started his course work in the community college system and eventually entered UC Davis. By in large our financial expenses with the UC system and our sons' experiences with courses and college life were vastly different from that of our daughter.

As a result of generous grants from Oberlin our musical son was able to attend Oberlin for less money than of the cost of attending UC Santa Cruz. Our chemical engineer son recently graduated from UC Davis ;but now has hefty student loans to repay because of the additional time needed to complete his course work. Sadly, his student loans carry interest rates higher than most of today's current mortgage rates and car loans. Go figure !

Reports indicate that tuition at all UC campuses has doubled since 1999. Granted that California's budget is a disaster; but it is unfortunate that the UC regents continue to attempt to balance their budget at the expense of students and their parents. Of course budget priorities could be adjusted. UC Berkeley is in the process of a $300 million dollar seismic upgrade of its stadium and athletic facilities. Stanford University (a private institution) recently spent approximately $100 million dollars on the university's new football stadium.

Many of our country's colleges and universities have substantial endowments and receive vast sums from both the public and private sector. In the words of Jerry McGuire: "Show me the money." Specifically, how is this money being used? The public perception is that too much is being spent on administrative costs, inflated salaries and extravagant expenses accounts and too little on students, especially in the area of holding tuitions costs down. There needs to be an accounting. It is time for the U.S. Department of Education to audit the books of all colleges and universities that in any way, shape or form receive directly or indirectly public funds. It is time for transparency. It is time for the American tax-paying public to see exactly how our colleges and universities handle their (our) money.