Institutional subsidies for collegiate sports programs continue to grow even as the schools regulate salaries and lay off employees, according to data on sports revenue and expenses collected by USA Today and reported in Inside Higher Ed on Tuesday. Operating expenses for the sports programs of most schools have remained largely flat since 2005, but the proportion of their budgets from "allocated" sources, which include student fees and institutional support, has risen dramatically, according to Inside Higher Ed. This also applies to sports programs that pay for themselves, Inside Higher Ed reported. While two-thirds of the sports programs reported higher revenues than operating expenses, only one-fourth made a profit after factoring in the cost of subsidies, according to Inside Higher Ed. The question of whether sports programs should be self-sufficient remains controversial, however, as some argue that institutional subsidies allow for benefits like discounted student tickets and prevents increased commercialization, according to Inside Higher Ed.
Hundreds of alumni, students and other advocates demonstrated in Jackson, Miss., against Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's motion to consolidate two historically black universities into one institution, according to WJTV. Barbour suggested the merger, which would consolidate Alcorn State University and Mississippi Valley State University into "Jackson State University," in an effort to reduce spending in response to the financial crisis, according to Inside Higher Ed. Barbour said both campuses would remain active, but demonstrators argued that the merge would limit the accessibility of education, Inside Higher Ed reported Jan. 19. Opponents of the governor's plan assert it would have a disproportionate effect on black colleges, could cause black faculty members to lose their jobs and could reduce the number of minority students in the school system, Inside Higher Ed reported.
Female scientists suffer from reduced productivity because they spend more time on household chores than their male counterparts, according to a study by Londa Schiebinger, the John L. Hinds Professor of History of Science and director of the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University, and Shannon Gilmartin, a quantitative analyst at the Institute. Their research shows that female scientists on average complete over half the housework in their homes, as opposed to male scientists who do about one quarter. In the paper, Schiebinger and Gilmartin encourage colleges to offer faculty financial assistance to hire household help, Inside Higher Ed reported on Tuesday. The authors acknowledged that in the current financial climate such benefits may not be fiscally possible, but encouraged universities to offer these benefits or other options to alleviate the drain on female scientists' time, according to Inside Higher Ed.
