The issue is that American academic institutions have adopted the inherited-wealth / social-class-based model that was so prevalent in Britain in the early 20th

The issue is that American academic institutions have adopted the inherited-wealth / social-class-based model that was so prevalent in Britain in the early 20th century. Elite schools are not centers of education so much as they are centers of networking for feeding the anoited few into positions in government and business, regardless of what actual skills and talents and abilities they possess. Eliminating legacy admissions and ensuring that K-12 schools across the country are of uniform high quality (in particular in the STEAM fields, yes that includes Art) would do much to reverse this trend, along with reducing college tuition costs. It's like wild salmon vs. farmed salmon - pampered students who never have to swim upstream don't develop the best qualities.