article thumbnail

How Gross Inequalities in Institutional Wealth Distort the Higher Education Ecosystem and Shortchange the Vast Majority of Middle- and Lower-Income Undergraduates

Confessions of a Community College Dean

The consequence: the richest institutions can fully fund the education of lower-income students, while the vast majority of working-class and lower-middle-class undergraduates must take out loans to pay for their education. Swensen, taking advantage of alternate assets, including hedge funds, private equity and natural resources.

article thumbnail

The Power of Relationships in Undergraduate Education

Confessions of a Community College Dean

Make it possible for instructors to provide more individualized feedback and to participate in more student engagement activities (like student-faculty lunches or co-curricular activities), by, for example, shifting from 3 to 4 credit hour classes and giving faculty access to modest student engagement funds.