Should We Teach Hip Hop? Hardly

Andrew Bluebond, writing for the far left website, Campus Progress, has titled a piece, "Why the History of Hip-Hop Should Be Taught in School," that neatly sums up what's wrong with higher education. In fairness you should expect as much from a gender studies major, but even this left me shaking my head.

In a nation where we have ridiculously high dropout rates, it just goes to show the politicking that goes into education curriculum. If you have no standards of what is good, then you will think anything is. Which explains why they are such things as hip hop professors and experts.

Maids and Claremont McKenna

After noting that Claremont McKenna reduced its maid service from twice a week to once a week, Inside Higher Ed asks,

In a time of economic difficulty, and ever-rising tuitions, are luxuries like maid service necessary?

“Necessary? No. But it is a great service,” said Marsha Tudor, assistant director of facilities and campus services at Claremont McKenna. “It’s a valuable service not just for student convenience, but it helps us maintain nicer rooms. Our housekeeping staff has good relationships with the students, and it provides an extra ear.”

But cutting maid service by half wasn’t enough to forestall other cuts necessitated by a large budget deficit, which forced the college to eliminate several open staff positions, freeze pay, and cut administrative staff, according to an e-mail that President Pamela Gann sent to employees and students in May 2009.

Some students aren't sure the service should have been a priority. “Every day the maids come and clean our rooms,” Adam Morris, a rising senior at Claremont McKenna, said via Facebook. “I mean, how much more spoiled can we get? We are already a bunch of spoiled rich kids. Do we really need maids cleaning up after every mess? It’s pretty ridiculous. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love it. Who wouldn't? But I think for college students trying to become adults, people shouldn't be cleaning up our mess. That is a mother thing to do when you're 10 years old."

It's pretty ridiculous to claim that "Every day the maids come and clean our rooms," when they point of fact do not. I wonder, though, having lived in Stark all of the years I lived on campus whether or not

I think the real problem here is when you have students paying for maid services they do not want or can't afford. If the option were to take out my own trash and pay less money, I would have opted to take out my own trash.

This is just another example of how the college bundles together all of these things that are totally not connected with the academic purpose of the university. Do we really need an all you can eat buffet? Do we really need an unlimited printing quota?

I'm living off campus next year so why should I have to pay the compulsory student activities fee when it is likely that I won't attend any of the parties?

I wish the university offered more choices of what you purchase or don't purchase along with your academic career.

The proper model is use fees, not free lunches, because we're all starting to realize that that costs money we don't have.