Elite Colleges "Blind-sided" by Perceptions of Elitism

[JurisDictum]

Finally, the huge largesse of tax money institutions like Harvard and Yale receive have come under scrutiny. They aren't even mentioning the fact that part of the reason they are able to raise so much money is also due to preferential tax treatment to University donations (why pay tax when you can donate to your kid university instead?). We're just talking about the money they get straight from the government.

And they freaked of course. Because if there is one thing that is constant in America, its the shamelessness of its elites.

The presidents also said they're trying desperately to address perceptions of elitism by taking every speaking engagement they can — touting their positive impacts on their communities to local civic groups, lawmakers and alumni. They're drafting op-eds and sending them to any publication that will take them. They're writing letters and economic impact statements for legislators. Some colleges are also working to recruit conservative students and students from rural areas more aggressively.

They say they haven’t received credit for the steps they’ve taken to address the widespread economic inequality on college campuses by pouring millions into financial aid, especially for low-income and working-class students, who rarely pay the full sky-high sticker prices at the nation's most elite schools.

Yea I don't think paid speaking engagements are -- I don't know -- the right move here? Sounds like you guys are about to get reamed by a bunch of angry Trump/Bernie-voting populists, and you guys go out for speaking engagements to alumni?

Look assholes, no one thinks everyone from Harvard is smarter than everyone else anymore. We just assumed your more privileged now. There's no fixing that. We used to value elitism. As they know -- because they purposefully market themselves as elitist. How can Harvard not be elitist? It's the god damn place elites go to school or its not really Harvard anymore -- is it?

But now we are valuing elitism less. We are going to insist that you pay for your own rich snob club. Taxes are for PUBLIC institutions god damnit. It's such a fuckin' joke to be giving any of this funding out to private companies that only educate the rich and privileged.