Some colleges are cutting back in new ways

Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Mon, Sep 14 2009 | 1 Comment

I have seen my fair share of ways that colleges can be wasteful. As far as spending goes, I have always wondered who let my Alma  Mater leave the huge football stadium lights on all the time. Leaving that many lights on when no one is around to enjoy it seems pretty wasteful to me. Also, the college spends so much money on pine straw two to three times a year, there has to be a cheaper way to landscape…How about grass guys?

Anyway, Time.com compiled a list of some of the cutbacks that colleges all across the country are going through with. Some of them I can agree with, but some of them seem like they could actually hurt the overall student body.

As far as maintenance goes, SUNY in Canton will be mowing lawns fewer times a month which will save the school $25,000 annually. Pitzer College will be able to save $80,000 a year just by power-washing the windows and sidewalks.

In academics you can expect some cuts at most colleges. Ivy League Stanford laid off 49 staffers (not faculty?) from it’s school of business. Arizona State University lost 48 undergraduate programs from its catalog. Following that trend Idaho State University cut some language classes including German, Russian, Arabic, and Chinese. They are just getting rid of the unpopular classes.

Campus dining is always a place where I was able to see money being lost by the minute. After all, most colleges offer some kind of buffet and when there is a buffet involved, food will be wasted and hence, money will be wasted. Harvard will be doing away with hot breakfasts in the dorms and this will save them $900,000 a year. The College of Wooster simply closed an entire dining hall.

These colleges are also cutting back on supplying faculty parties. Carleton College will be able to save nearly $4,000 per year by not offering shrimp and wine during parties held for the faculty.

There are also plenty of colleges that are cutting athletics and communications. A college I read about is even doing away with landlines to save a thousand dollars or so (hey, I suppose every little bit counts, right?). You can see the rest of the list at the link to the source at the bottom of the article.

Source

Related posts:
Cuts from the public school system that everyone will notice
Tips to Surviving Business School or Undergraduate Life: Know what you’re getting into.

Tags: alma mater, mowing lawns, undergraduate programs

Consumer Confidence and the Recession

Jennifer McClelland | RSS | Wed, Jun 24 2009 | 0 Comments

In a recession, everyone feels the pinch. One of the worst hits is the cost of living continuing to increase while many are losing their jobs and homes. Without any extra income (or even a complete and sudden loss of income) it is difficult to pay for goods and services that are the same as they were a year ago, but still cost more.

Certain monthly bills, such as telephone or cable bills, continue to rise. However, these services can be seen as an expense that in unnecessary and are often the first to go when it comes time to cut costs.

However, bills like electricity and gas are almost necessary. Over the winter, some who have seen very hard times were freezing to death. I can imagine it will be worse this year versus years in the past, this summer many people will likely have heat strokes in their own homes.

In light of the current economic crisis, some of these companies may want to consider measures to help their customers get through times when they have a hard time making ends meet.

Other than monthly bills, consumer goods are seeing a rise in prices. More and more every month, consumers have to pay more for the same amount of an item and sometimes the same price for less. In February 2009, the consumer prices index (CPI) rose 0.4 percent, the highest rise in prices since July when gas was over $4.00 a gallon and the CPI rose by 0.7 percent.

The reason the CPI rose 0.4 percent while unemployment rose to the highest levels in nearly a quarter century was due to the increase in oil prices (yet again).

College tuition is another key player in inflation. Although I don’t have any exact numbers to back it up, while I have been in college (since August 2004), I have paid an average of 10% more every year onto my already (what I think is) outrageous tuition.  Here’s an interesting fact, this year tuition and admissions at my school are going up but classroom spending and faculty numbers are falling.

On the other side, while lower prices sound like a good idea, the decrease in prices can actually make a recession worse by

- Lowering wages – When prices of items decrease, wages also decrease as employers attempt to cut costs.

- Layoffs – Employers who are not receiving the same income will begin to lay off workers as they are unable to keep them on payroll.

- Lowering home and stock prices.

As you can see, either side of the argument has its fair share of points that need to be considered. However, I feel as though raising prices, versus keeping them steady through times like these, can be seen more as “kicking them when they’re down” rather than actually helping the economy. I also find that anyone would be hard pressed to find an average consumer that knows the “other side” to rising prices. Most consumers just feel the pinch on their own wallets, and I can say that I’m really no different.

Related posts:
Consumer confidence drops for October
Housing is becoming more affordable

Tags: cable bills, exact numbers, economic crisis