Only with a NY state scholarship and a part-time job in the cafeteria at the student union, was I able to make it through Cornell University. After required freshman dormitory, I shared apartments with other students. Many other students - like Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, and Mary - were not financially privileged and worked their 4 years (Peter did folk music at the local bistro - Johnny's Big Red). And I well remember those more financially privileged often sharing their good fortune with others...
At the outset, I would point out that I think Mr. Tyrebyter has misinterpreted Lee Schoenbeck's comment, which does not strike me as Ivy League promotional material. For my part, I would simply caution against taking a facile "anti-snob" position that can quickly morph into a form of reverse snobbery. Certainly, there are some legitimate criticisms of "elite education"––Froma Harrup's term––but we should be careful not to overreach and throw the baby out with the bathwater. The Ivy League schools' faculties and students have considerably more to offer than "hot air puffery." Finally, Harrup's insinuation that Ivy League schools basically cater to the rich is not exactly fair either. I suspect that there is an abundance of scholarships available at those schools for the academically qualified who lack financial means. Interestingly, the tuition at Ms. Harrup's alma mater, NYU, is more than that of Harvard and Princeton and is on a par with the other Ivy League schools.
I am a grad of U Illinois-Urbana-Champaign. Many family members also graduated from UofI. It's a great university. My daughter and SIL both did their undergrads at UofI, then SIL went to NYU in NYC for grad school. Daughter worked in NYC and found huge bias against the Midwest and against "cow colleges" like UofI (with many Nobel Prize winners including John Bardeen who won 2 Nobel prizes). The bias against the Midwest on the East and West Coasts exists.
Just because many of them have less real experience than an aggressive potted plant, I don’t think we should make fun of them. Potted plants have purpose too. They decorate rooms where real people are working to solve real problems
Only with a NY state scholarship and a part-time job in the cafeteria at the student union, was I able to make it through Cornell University. After required freshman dormitory, I shared apartments with other students. Many other students - like Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, and Mary - were not financially privileged and worked their 4 years (Peter did folk music at the local bistro - Johnny's Big Red). And I well remember those more financially privileged often sharing their good fortune with others...
At the outset, I would point out that I think Mr. Tyrebyter has misinterpreted Lee Schoenbeck's comment, which does not strike me as Ivy League promotional material. For my part, I would simply caution against taking a facile "anti-snob" position that can quickly morph into a form of reverse snobbery. Certainly, there are some legitimate criticisms of "elite education"––Froma Harrup's term––but we should be careful not to overreach and throw the baby out with the bathwater. The Ivy League schools' faculties and students have considerably more to offer than "hot air puffery." Finally, Harrup's insinuation that Ivy League schools basically cater to the rich is not exactly fair either. I suspect that there is an abundance of scholarships available at those schools for the academically qualified who lack financial means. Interestingly, the tuition at Ms. Harrup's alma mater, NYU, is more than that of Harvard and Princeton and is on a par with the other Ivy League schools.
I am a grad of U Illinois-Urbana-Champaign. Many family members also graduated from UofI. It's a great university. My daughter and SIL both did their undergrads at UofI, then SIL went to NYU in NYC for grad school. Daughter worked in NYC and found huge bias against the Midwest and against "cow colleges" like UofI (with many Nobel Prize winners including John Bardeen who won 2 Nobel prizes). The bias against the Midwest on the East and West Coasts exists.
Just because many of them have less real experience than an aggressive potted plant, I don’t think we should make fun of them. Potted plants have purpose too. They decorate rooms where real people are working to solve real problems
You need to re-read the piece.