Forgive me for my bitter cynicism (or don't), but I couldn't help but feel that the thesis of this article boiled down to the following quote: "My alma mater, Oberlin College, provides financial aid for as many as 70% of its students."
I have a sneaking suspicion that the author wrote this entire article to assert that Oberlin is a "top college." (I am agnostic / do not care at all on this matter.)
He does claim to answer the question of what your tuition money is really spent on: (a) he notes that salaries for tenured professors has increased, and (b) he addresses the fact that colleges are building fancy new dorms/athletic facilities/etc to increase student demand. Without evidence, asserts that your tuition pays for these. Without evidence, I would be inclined to believe that these are more likely to be funded by named endowments from private donors. Again, I feel that this thesis is merely ostensible, to justify his assertions about his alma mater.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the author wrote this entire article to assert that Oberlin is a "top college." (I am agnostic / do not care at all on this matter.)
He does claim to answer the question of what your tuition money is really spent on: (a) he notes that salaries for tenured professors has increased, and (b) he addresses the fact that colleges are building fancy new dorms/athletic facilities/etc to increase student demand. Without evidence, asserts that your tuition pays for these. Without evidence, I would be inclined to believe that these are more likely to be funded by named endowments from private donors. Again, I feel that this thesis is merely ostensible, to justify his assertions about his alma mater.