Students still come first

“Can we afford another four years?” is becoming a question that resonates not only with people concerned about the political situation of the United States, but also those commenting on the College’s financial situation and current leadership decisions. And the commentary certainly seems to hold validity as Oberlin looks down and sees the glaring red numbers at the bottom of the page.

At every turn it seems there is another group of people on campus trying to convince the College administration that they need and deserve a certain substantial sum of money to start up a new program, improve facilities or make long-overdue renovations. The motivations behind the proposed changes and allocations all seem to point in the same direction: to provide students with the opportunities that they deserve so that they can grow to their full potential while at Oberlin.

The hard truth is that the College is always going to have to prioritize and privilege some projects over others. The real question may be the motivations behind these decisions. Do the jazz studies department’s plans to overhaul its space in Hales have some intrinsic merit that somehow makes them more important than student pleas for a new theater space? Is filling the vacated chairs of retired professors a more worthy cause than building a new track to protect student athletes from serious injury? Every individual has a different answer and a different reasoning.

The College’s administration has a difficult job in listening to all those voices and then either approving, postponing or denying projects and proposals. Their critics are harsh and their supporters persistent. But there has always been one fundamental point that the administration puts forward: the College is here to serve the students and the community.

And so it becomes even more critical to answer the question, “Can we afford another four years?” Not only because of the College’s debts, but because the “we” involved are the students — past, present and future. Can we afford to pay for all these projects as tuition increases with every new proposal? Can we afford to lose diversity as the financial aid funds go to pay for other projects? Can we afford to make decisions today that might hurt future generations of Obies?

This is a turning point in the history of the College. There have been financial crises before and there will be again. The idea of the College as a business is distasteful to many, but a reality nonetheless. There are high returns and low returns in the games of economics and capital.

These financial decisions can be guided by a different idea of capital, however. The human capital that this college produces is equal to none other. If the College continues in its belief that one person can change the world, that learning and labor are inherently connected, then the administration will strive to uphold its intellectual profit. Money spent to ensure that Oberlin students get the most from their education will never result in a deficit of any kind. That means prioritizing projects that will broaden the scope and depth of an Oberlin education. That means encouraging student involvement of all kinds. The red line may be looming, but it will always be there if the College turns a deaf ear to the cries of those who are paying. This College is built from its alumni, students and prospectives, and they will keep its legacy alive.

–Faith Richards, Managing Editor
–Josh Keating, Chief news Editor
–Casey Ashenhurst, Tiffany Perry, Managing Editors
 
 

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