Tuesday Edition

Go to Garrison Keillor's Cool Friends interview

On a trip away from Lake Wobegon, Garrison Keillor took time to talk to us at tompeters.com. He and Erik had a great conversation about his latest book, A Christmas Blizzard, and many other topics, including a note from Julie Christie. We know you'll enjoy reading his Cool Friends interview.

View our Archives for past interviews.

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dispatches from the new world of work

Some Unadulterated Good News for Americans!
Market Share That Matters!

Little is more important to America's long-term future than its true #1 "service industry"—research universities. There are rankings and rankings and rankings, and some are confusing as hell. Among the top 50, various polls give us, roughly, between 50% and 70%. (Add in the Europeans and Canada and the number is consistently at or above 90%.) In one poll, raw # of scientific papers, American universities took the top 24 slots. Given budget woes affecting the likes of the University of California, all of whose campuses are usually in the top 100, the situation is always precarious.

Tom Peters posted this on 11/26/09.

Comments

Great news.
Today, in reaction to the dreadful "end of America" crowd, remember "Don't let the turkeys get you down".

Something I'll be thankful for at this time next year is if someone innovates and embeds new terms that replace the aweful "service industry", "training and speaking industry", even "religion industry" memes.

You the guy for the job, Tom!

Happy Thanksgiving

Posted by Randy Bosch at November 26, 2009 11:12 AM

Great news indeed, Tom! How can we ensure that young people can actually afford to go to these institutions?

Posted by Judith Ellis at November 26, 2009 1:48 PM

It was free to go to California Universities for state residents before the tax revolts of the late 1970's.

Posted by zorro at November 26, 2009 2:40 PM

Zorro,
That's not correct. It wasn't free - and I am addressing Registration Fees for California residents I was a UC Berkeley student 1964-70), not room & board/books/supplies, etc., but in 1960's dollars it was "affordable" for many - not all - students and families. Loans and student jobs were a big deal for a significant percentage of students then.

Posted by Randy Bosch at November 26, 2009 3:48 PM

http://thebackbench.blogspot.com/2007/08/tuition-at-university-of-california.html

Here's a hopefully reliable histroy of california tuition - fees.
Note how Ronald Reagan plays a part.

Posted by zorro at November 26, 2009 8:32 PM

Zorro,
Now you're onto it! Tuition was added on top of the previously existing Registration fees. Almost everyone since - from both major parties - on the Board of Regents has happily gone along with "more".

Posted by Randy Bosch at November 26, 2009 8:53 PM

A positive model was implemented in Wyoming a few years ago (I believe called "Hathaway Grants"?). Any graduate of a Wyoming public high school who qualified for entry into the University of Wyoming had tuition waived. This continues as long as Wyoming runs such a huge state budget surplus (due to mineral extraction fees...). Of course, not many states run budget surpluses, and the future of mineral extraction fees for carbon based energy resources is more suspect than the remaining environmental quality of the "extraction" lands.
Trade-offs are tough.

Posted by Randy Bosch at November 26, 2009 8:58 PM