Digression III: Thoughts on My Alma Mater

For the past several months Sacramento State University, my alma mater, has been embroiled in debate over a proposed Recreation/Wellness/Events Center. I won’t bore you with the details, (if you want them, go here. Basically, it’s a new facility of which the center piece is an 8,000 seat arena. The list of other features is pretty cool too. It looks as if having it on campus would be a great thing. There’s only one problem.

There’s a $73 million-plus price tag on it.

The university has vowed to raise at least $27 million of that, leaving–you guessed it–students to pay for the remaining $46 million. That would of course come through fee increases.

Opponents say this is the wrong time to embark on this project. Student fees are on the rise already, forcing many of them to scratch and claw for what is supposed to be a cheap education. Most of them wouldn’t even be around to use the facility–groundbreaking wouldn’t even begin until 2007. They also say there are more pressing issues on campus. The dorms are a mess, there are older buildings that should be upgraded before building a new one–and there’s always a need for more parking.

Supporters say that the fee increases are a small price to pay for a facility that would enhance campus life and in turn, enhance the value of the degrees earned there. They say the building would go a long way toward shedding the “commuter school” tag the university has. It would increase school pride. Students would no longer go there just to go to classes, get that diploma, and move on.

Here’s the thing: Most people don’t read past that $73 million.

Like it or not, unless you go to a school that already has a tradition of pride, it doesn’t mean a whole lot. The truth is, most of us wouldn’t have chosen Sac State if UCLA or Stanford had come knocking on the door. We chose Sac State more out of convenience or necessity than anything.

A friend of mine at the school paper wrote that the RWEC issue has “come down to the almighty dollar.” He couldn’t be more correct.

Today, everything ultimately comes down to the almighty dollar somehow.

How do we choose where to fill our gas tanks? Where to rent an apartment? How do we decide whether to buy Kraft Mac & Cheese or the stuff in a similar looking box?

It’s about money.

Let me put it another way. Suppose you’re a potential college student–your age doesn’t matter. Suppose you’re all set to attend whatever college you decided on–how you’re paying for it doesn’t matter. Once you earn your degree, you are put on an exclusive list and have first crack at a job in your field that pays a starting salary of $40,000 a year, has excellent benefits and great chances for advancement.

Now, suppose someone offered you the same opportunity, but you could skip the whole college thing. How many of us would choose the first scenario?

We go to college because it opens doors to better opportunities. Better jobs. We’re in it for the money. The friends we make and the experiences we have along the way are simply a life-enriching byproduct.

The bottom line is that we’re there so we can get the job and make the money. At Sac State, there is a significant percentage of students already supporting families and paying bills. They have jobs, they make money. But like everyone else, they want or need more. School pride be damned.

Maybe the RWEC is a good idea. Maybe it will accomplish its goal of creating school pride. But asked to choose between that and an extra Benjamin or two in our pockets…well…you know the saying.

Money talks.

That $73 million is speaking loud and clear.