The State Journal’s front page article on student commencement campaigns on May 17 implicitly raised questions about the appropriateness of such campaigns at a public university – particularly within a unit that has raised undergraduate tuition by $1,000 and received an $85 million gift within the past year.
How dare we even broach the topic of “giving back” with students? Are we like the hiker climbing a mountain just because it is there? Or is there something more important about the journey?