Among other things
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I started reading that and then just said to myself “Meh, no one from my generation is going to be able to afford college for their children anyway”. $1mil per kid or whatever it’s going to be in 13-18 years is unattainable so I’m spending all of my money on the kids now on life skills and languages.
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Also, trade skills. There are plumbers, electricians, and HVAC guys who make waaaaay more than I do.
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Yep, trade skills and the military are also great options. Trade skills pay well and hopefully it will be a very long time before we have robot plumbers. Makerspaces are incredibly important as well. But if I can keep up with their languages then college in Europe or Asia might also be a possibility. I am just working to provide them with as many skills as possible - and then when they are old enough to choose it’s up to them to figure it out. 
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Yeah,
Colleges seem to have gone off the deep end when it comes to what they are spending money on. While the programs slowing improve, the amenities seem to be where the majority of their investment and costs are coming from. Colleges are selling themselves as 4 year all inclusive resorts at this point. How often do you see colleges advertising their specific faculty members? I can’t give you an example, and would guess the vast majority just don’t do this. But, Chick-fil-a in all the cafeterias and the new climbing gym will be in all the marketing materials.
No wonder they are getting so expensive and graduating more people with useless pat of the back degrees.
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It is a mess for sure. I remember when the student government for my college decided that the old 60’s buildings just wouldn’t do and lobbied to rebuild everything. I disagreed with it then and was glad that I was about to graduate. I won’t be donating money to my college for scholarships because I don’t believe that they would use my money wisely and because I’m not going to be able to afford college for my own children - I’m sure not going to donate money for someone else’s children to go to college.
Colleges are spending money on shiny new buildings during a time when no one needs to be physically present for most classes to get a quality education. Department chairs are convincing people who aren’t very financially sophisticated to fund their spending with loans that they probably won’t be able to pay back. It doesn’t make any sense and it’s just another example of a mess being left for the next generation.
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Next year: Chik-fil-A in the climbing gym.
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We are too late for even this joke.
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College Football Facilities … but keep in mind ALOT of it was donated
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Agree. The mantra for the many years have been “without a college education, kids don’t stand a chance these days”. That’s a bad message to be delivering, and it’s inaccurate. Without training, a career will be tough, but college is only one of the methods to get the training one needs.
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Unless the kid has an inclination for STEM, learning a trade is a great strategy. Those jobs are very unlikely to be outsourced.
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Agree. I think Youtube/Internet/TV shows are doing a lot to highlight trade skills. I’m far removed from 1-12 education, so I can’t speak to that. I’m curious if there is much emphasis on non-college career paths these days. I suspect not, but truly don’t know.
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I tend to think the public schools and some of the private ones are still on the “get them into college” track.
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It might be donated but a sport that gives players brain damage during a time when most people make a living with their brain seems almost as unethical as convincing young people to take out $200K loans to major in liberal arts. I also wonder if there will be lawsuits eventually.
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Two very different articles … but both relate to something built into human and needs to have an out…
We like to hide from our “evil” violent shadow side but is part of each of us, if it isn’t expressed in one way, it will be expressed in another. Yes, everyone is different in that expression and some expressions are better for society than others but those that have experienced the raw power inside will tell you there is nothing else like it. Football and other violent sports are vital to giving a more healthy out for it.
This one relates to football and society and discipline
This is for peacenicks out there that seem to think there is such a thing as society without violence
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I’m not going to believe that convincing young people to give each other brain damage is a good plan to deal with human aggression. There are a lot of other sports, violent video games, punching bags, batting cages and anger rooms. I can kick and punch things in one of my favorite video games or put on a VR helmet and shoot things. No brain damage required. Also, traumatic brain injury causes aggressive behavior.
I don’t care much about this issue except that I think that football stadiums are a waste of money and my kids aren’t going to be playing football.
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I played rugby for a year in college, it was like a drug. When the season ended I had a hard time not having that physical outlet to let out aggression. I never tried to injure anyone, but the raw feeling of tackling someone or even getting tackled/hit was a huge stress relief and made everything else that much more bearable.
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Actually, it is BOTH. Plan to go to college, but earn training and certifications while you are still in high school. A kid can graduate from high school with an associates degree from a local college as well as their high school diploma. And the options for training and certifications is pretty mind-boggling. There were kids at the district I retired from who walked from graduation into jobs paying $30k+ a year, due to the certifications and training earned.
The range of offerings is pretty mind-boggling. We attempted to produce a reference guide for students and parents listing the options available at each high school campus, and it was one big brochure.
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We as a society firmly - almost unshakably - believe in a university education as the key to a better, secure life, thus the fixation on it despite its steadily worsening economics - particularly those that must borrow against their futures in order to attend.
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Let’s continue on the line drawn …
Parents are more scared and that line keeps closing to the point that it will be harmful to allow children to play at all … They might fall … They might get hit by something … Fear fear fear
It is unnecessary for children to play together. They can read about playing and play video games. They can use their imaginations … there is absolutely no need to subject them to the possible diseases and injuries of a playground. Keep them inside and sheltered. 
But seriously, it seems to be the direction we are headed … I can tell you it won’t work.
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