I'm going to push a little further. Maybe, just maybe, the root problem is our financial scheme for higher ed, in particular, the idea of foisting the cost on

I'm going to push a little further. Maybe, just maybe, the root problem is our financial scheme for higher ed, in particular, the idea of foisting the cost on the student prior to enrollment (let alone graduation, or gainful employment). Say what you want about our K-12 system, but its costs haven't spiraled completely out of control. Nor have the costs of highly state-subsidized public universities in many other parts of the world. I don't think enough people are seriously considering the idea that we have shot ourselves in the feet by demanding that the government and private industry make a return on investment on a basic service that provided all sorts of positive externalities when people have access to it. We've encouraged colleges to compete with one another for market share. Maybe the incentives that aren't working for us are a result of our cultural infatuation with winner-take-all competition.