Jai Ranchod

The average Wooster student receives more in scholarship money per year than a year of college would have cost 25 years ago. That is a testament to the amount of money Wooster sets aside for financial aid, but it is also an alarming statement about the cost of college education in general. The driving force behind this cost increase has been described by one trustee as “an inter-collegiate arms race” of amenities, services and buildings. This is of course intended to attract prospective students. But what about the students who have to worry about paying for college?  A current Wooster first-year can expect to pay about $113,000 plus inevitable tuition hikes and still graduate with $27,000 in debt. That creates an inaccessibility that is severely detrimental to the idea that Wooster is providing a public service as its tax-exempt status suggests.

Wooster’s situation in this regard is by no means unique; the cost of college is skyrocketing around the country. So how do we distinguish ourselves as leaders in the academic community?  How do we apply our independent minds to challenge Wooster to take meaningful action?

The first step is to stop trying to follow the lead of established high-end liberal arts colleges that bank on cost, amenities and services providing prestige. The more appropriate approach is to invest in students and professors; the campus should be defined by its people. Take top liberal arts school Berea College in Kentucky, for example. Only a third of students pay anything, and the average student graduates with $7,600 in debt. Obviously their endowment helps, but their responsible spending is equally as accountable. From 2010 to 2012 Wooster increased spending on “student services” from $13.4 million to $16.2 million. Berea College spent just $9.1 million in this category in 2012. And even though they spent 7.1 times more on expenses labeled “public service” than Wooster, Wooster still managed to outspend Berea overall.

So let’s be judicious about which schools we learn from and make the investment in students and professors. Let’s encourage C.O.W. to take a leadership role in the academic community by providing true accessibility to a Wooster education.

(Data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics, Berea College financial office, College of Wooster financial office, and the College Board.)