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All that reducing donations to selective research universities will do is to reduce the quality of research. Given that universities like MIT and Harvard form t

All that reducing donations to selective research universities will do is to reduce the quality of research. Given that universities like MIT and Harvard form the scientific backbone of the United States, I hesitate to condone the idea of sacrificing that for the sake of reducing Ivy League "elitism." It shouldn't be a situation where we have to pick 1 option out of 2. If you really want to reduce the socioeconomic gap in education, spend more money on public education as a nation. Donations from wealthy donors with next to no affiliation to local community colleges won't solve anything.

ForHackernews 13y ago
In the United States, most scientific research is funded through government grants from agencies like the Department of Energy, Defense Department, or the National Science Foundation. Comparatively little research is actually funded from the endowments/operating budget of the universities themselves.
- whathappenedto 13y ago
  Please don't make such a blanket statement. Donations do indeed fund scientific research directly. When a faculty member is hired, they get a "startup fund" to get through their first few years before they have grants, most of which is donated money. There is also a lot of research which is not "billed" to a grant, but is still meaningful, and supported by "internal funds" which are smaller university fellowships for pilot projects. These internal funds are also the only source of funding outside the physical sciences (for areas like humanities and social science) and are almost entirely provided for by donations.
  - pcrh 13y ago
    The amount of funding that the University supplies directly is obviously dependent on the field, and it's own traditions. However, in biomedicine, when a new prof has "startup" funds, these are often linked to their contributions to teaching and "service", i.e. admin, pastoral care, etc; they can later "buy-out" their service obligation by raising grants equal to their salary and costs, or more. So the "startup" funds are usually not entirely paying for research.
- HarryHirsch 13y ago
  What is funded through the endowment, though, is university infrastructure, including laboratories. Also, building maintenance if funded through research grants, that is the dreaded "indirect costs". The steep cut in federal support for research means that universities need to find other avenues to maintain their building stock.
pcrh 13y ago
Scientific research at elite Universities is largely funded by grants. Research grants even subsidize education at some places. So reducing donations to the University is not likely to have a huge impact on research (at least in my field - biomedicine). If you want to donate to research, a better bet is to donate to one of the research foundations that disseminate grants to universities, and even better, to a foundation that restricts the amount of the funding that can be applied to administrative costs (which are often as much as 40% of the amount funded).

ForHackernews 13y ago

In the United States, most scientific research is funded through government grants from agencies like the Department of Energy, Defense Department, or the National Science Foundation. Comparatively little research is actually funded from the endowments/operating budget of the universities themselves.

whathappenedto 13y ago
Please don't make such a blanket statement. Donations do indeed fund scientific research directly. When a faculty member is hired, they get a "startup fund" to get through their first few years before they have grants, most of which is donated money. There is also a lot of research which is not "billed" to a grant, but is still meaningful, and supported by "internal funds" which are smaller university fellowships for pilot projects. These internal funds are also the only source of funding outside the physical sciences (for areas like humanities and social science) and are almost entirely provided for by donations.
- pcrh 13y ago
  The amount of funding that the University supplies directly is obviously dependent on the field, and it's own traditions. However, in biomedicine, when a new prof has "startup" funds, these are often linked to their contributions to teaching and "service", i.e. admin, pastoral care, etc; they can later "buy-out" their service obligation by raising grants equal to their salary and costs, or more. So the "startup" funds are usually not entirely paying for research.
HarryHirsch 13y ago
What is funded through the endowment, though, is university infrastructure, including laboratories. Also, building maintenance if funded through research grants, that is the dreaded "indirect costs". The steep cut in federal support for research means that universities need to find other avenues to maintain their building stock.

pcrh 13y ago

Scientific research at elite Universities is largely funded by grants. Research grants even subsidize education at some places. So reducing donations to the University is not likely to have a huge impact on research (at least in my field - biomedicine). If you want to donate to research, a better bet is to donate to one of the research foundations that disseminate grants to universities, and even better, to a foundation that restricts the amount of the funding that can be applied to administrative costs (which are often as much as 40% of the amount funded).