The Decline Of Research At Public Universities Erodes Public Trust
When Marc Edwards, a professor of environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, helped uncover the water contamination crisis in Flint, he did so mostly by burning through his own money… As public universities lose state funding, and are increasingly forced to function more like any other business, universities have to shift priorities. CEO-like presidents are hired, poorly paid adjuncts are called upon to fill in the gaps, and schools treat low-income and homeless students as “risks.” But another big problem is that these universities also lose their research missions — and as a country, we suffer for it. With fewer resources in this area, researchers do fewer partnerships with communities, there is less innovation, and public trust in research falls…