Yes, you touch on several things. I went to the University of South Carolina in the 80s when tuition was $800 a semester. I could earn that much working in the summer. I'd pay tuition and my dad would buy the books in the fall, and we'd switch in the spring. I won a few small academic scholarships my last two years and could pay for everything. That's just not possible anymore.

I'm sympathetic to students' need to start paying back loans, and I understand that they don't want to have modest salaries that won't allow families or homes or travel or many of the important parts of life. I'm not faulting them for their choices; they can hardly make different ones in the current environment. I would like more local and national conversation on the importance of education, including the liberal arts and the "soft" skills of critical thinking, analysis, reflection, communication, evaluation, etc. I feel like we'd benefit.

Thanks for reading and responding, my friend. I appreciate you.