Message-ID: <3.0.1.32.19970714131043.008a1d40@pop-server.Hawaii.Edu> Date: Mon, 14 Jul 1997 13:10:43 -1000 From: Scott Campbell <mailto:scottc@HAWAII.EDU> Subject: Re: Patents the ultimate goal? To: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU
At 05:29 AM 7/14/97 -1000, Sarah Ward wrote: >Jim,
> You raise an important point. This institution is increasingly
focussed on >the bottom line; research which generates income for the university, whether
>through proprietary products or other means, is more highly regarded than
>>snip<<
>Any thoughts from others at similar institutions?
Sarah and Jim,
Thanks for the reply Sarah. I was going to comment to Jim's points but just have not had the extra time so far.
What you state applies also to the University of Hawaii. While the legislature is granting barely enough funds the governor continues to give the university between a 5-10% per year budget cut from the year before, regardless of what the legislature appropriated. There is a *long* story here that I will not relate. We have been sustaining these cuts for over 3 years now. What this means, though, it that we are now talking about *vertical* cuts whereas in the past, savings have come as ad hoc rescissions.
High weight is given to areas such as astronomy that -- given Hawaii's blessings of clear air and high volcanic mountains that make it the world-class place for deep-space telescopes -- *leverage* state dollars. They leverage 3 or 4 to 1. That is, they bring into the state 3 for every state dollar invested.
While this is great for the number counters and the bottom line, it is literally impossible for a Land-Grant agriculture college to do the same. Especially when an Extension system is factored into the equation. It is just not that simple. What an agric. college contributes to a community, state, or nation is often very esoteric and *very* difficult to fractionate out in dollar terms. For example.... how does one put a monetary value our Center for the Family's contributions to displaced sugar workers who have lost their jobs because of sugar plantation closings? How much extra income does the state receive from taxes, etc. when those workers are able to rejoin the workforce rapidly? How is this measured. It is very easy to see the benefit/ratio when the state puts, say, $4 million into astronomy and then the Japanese build the Subaru telescope at $ 16 million (just a number out of a hat for this example) on Mauna Kea.
Bottom line: the university president has told us that programs that do *not* leverage state funds effectively will be on the top of the list for cutting. This means that the agriculture and education (teacher training) colleges are up there.
On the other hand, when the college tries to charge for brochures, etc. previously given away for free, the public screams loudly about how they paid for them with tax dollars and we are trying to double-dip into their pockets.
As Sarah said, it is complicating our work lives considerably and making major impacts on how we do our work. It is corrupting the Land-Grant concept and mission. This is not something we initiated but something that U.S. society and its elected officials have forced upon us. We are trying to survive as a reasonably competent academic institution and that is becoming more and more difficult daily.
My personal editorial on this is that what is happening will have major and lasting effects locally, nationally (USA) and globally. My department had a yearly average of 65 graduate students 4 years ago. Today we only have about 20. Most are international students (many from China, Thailand and other Asian countries). This is a global problem that leads to such issues as the plant patent debate. We are seeing and arguing about the symptoms while not looking at the causes. The symptoms will remain as long as the cause/s remain/s. What is the solution..... ???????
Cheers,
Scott
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv I. Scott Campbell, Ph.D. 1910 East-West Rd. Dept. of Agronomy & Soil Sci. Honolulu, HI 96822 Univ. of Hawaii at Manoa http://agrss.sherman.Hawaii.Edu >> My employer disowns everything I say <<