Comments on: Reducing Expenses – an EphBlog brainstorm

By: JG

JG — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:50:37 +0000

Cut the ridiculous full-color, gigantic brochures sent out under the guise of “fundraising.” Most younger alums would rather get an email (and are more likely to read it) – and you could include the pretty pictures at no cost and probably send more of them. You save on postage, save on printing, and avoid pissing off those that see it as a waste and make a point of NOT replying to such soliciations (me and others I know).

Fundraising is important and especially now needs to be maintained, but there is some fat that can be cut without eliminating staff, programs, etc. I realize that this isn’t a huge amount of money, but it matters…not even getting into the environmental and waste aspects.

At this point, I think cuts should first be done with the idea of not cutting back on program or staff we already have but eliminating waste (and there is always waste).

By: David Kane

David Kane — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:46:33 +0000

Guy Crease points out that faculty salaries were cut 10% in the Great Depression. It would be useful to know more about the history of that era. With luck, we will not need to live through it again.

By: annonymosity

annonymosity — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 05:34:47 +0000

*cough* cut WNY *cough*

By: frank uible

frank uible — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:55:41 +0000

Close the College for a year or two or more.

By: Jonathan '05

Jonathan '05 — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 01:56:09 +0000

Well, Will, I at least liked your idea to make something useful out of the chaos of discussion. I guess it was important, though to have another place to be sarcastic on Ephblog.

(snide as that sounds, I admit I laughed aloud at Ronit’s first one)

By: Ronit

Ronit — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:45:20 +0000

- eliminate expensive, unproductive departments like physics, biology, compsci, chemistry, geosciences, art, foreign languages, economics, etc.

By: hwc

hwc — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:18:22 +0000

Charge Nike more for using the athletic fields?

Cut back on enrichment classes?

By: Ronit

Ronit — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:07:08 +0000

In fact, let's get rid of professors altogether, David has already proven that computers can handle the job better anyway.

By: hwc

hwc — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 23:58:08 +0000

…think that “Admit fewer zero revenue students” should be rephrased as “revenue-aware admissions.”

I think we should rephrase it in academic-speak:

“We are 100% committed to need-blind admissions. We are simply trying to address our discount rate.”

By: Ronit

Ronit — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 23:57:48 +0000

- luxury satellite campus in Dubai that charges at least $100k per student; only oil sheikhs and Russian oligarchs need apply.

- outsource the teaching of all 100-level courses to India and China; who needs a professor in class when you’ve got videoconferencing?

- have students shovel snow and mow lawns, lay off groundskeepers

- create new Hopkins Memorial Center for Defense/Corn Products/Right Wing Ideology

- merge with JP Morgan

By: David

David — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 23:51:45 +0000

1) Cuts to charitable giving (e.g., local hospital, art museum and schools). 2) I think that "Admit fewer zero revenue students" should be rephrased as "revenue-aware admissions." For example, there are many international students (say the Korean students at this school) that would be able to pay part or full tuition. These richer applicants are (I think) relatively easy to identify because they go to an expensive private school with limited/no financial aid. I bet that many of them are as good as the international students who we currently admit in our revenue-blind system. We should not reduce international admissions but replacing some of the almost universally poor current internationals with richer ones would help the College's finances.