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Harvard is a private University. In what sense are its education services a public good? Or are you saying you think education should only be offered by the gov
by nonethewiser 3y ago
Harvard is a private University. In what sense are its education services a public good? Or are you saying you think education should only be offered by the government? Or …?
- paulgb 3y agoIt’s a 501c3. At the very least, the IRS believes that it serves a public good.
- nonethewiser 3y agoIts a private institution and a 501c3. I believe you are saying it benefits from federal tax savings. Please clarify if you mean something else but in any case being a 501c3 doesnt make their education services a public good. Subject to additional compliance for receiving federal money, absolutely.
- paulgb 3y agoBeing a 501c3 educational institution requires that “the services provided by the organization are available to the general public.” It’s a private institution as you say, but it’s a private institution that benefits from a particular tax status in exchange for serving the public good. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/501#k https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/501#k
- leereeves 3y agoI believe they are saying that education should be available to everyone. TIL that public good has a specific meaning similar to that: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_good_(economics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_good_(economics)
- ericmay 3y agoIs there really a meaningful distinction between Harvard the private university offering an education and education “offered by the government”? I don’t see a practical difference between Harvard and Berkeley for example, other than class rankings and maybe tuition cost. Same courses and curriculum, big government research grants and funding, same accreditation bodies, both are NCAA members, both are AAU members, etc.