Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-23
HIGHER EDUCATION
Our Universities and Colleges Spend
Millions Annually.
HOW TIE FUNDS ARE INVESTED
The Business Side of Our Modem
institutions of Learning.
MONEY Is ALWAYS NEEDED


Written for The Evening Star.
Although 1t is seldom thought of in this
connection, the business of college educa
ton is one of the great businesses of The
country. The 426 colleges and universities
that are about to reopen their doors to the
10000 American college students repre-
sent an invested capital of s2J0,O00,6O0, and
give employment to 5000 persons teach
ers and officers. If all the professors, stu
dents and buildings of all the American
colleges were brought together in one To-
cality they would form a city Of the first
magnitude. Counting the amount expend-
ed by the students themselves and that
expended in their behalf by the colleges.
the total sum paid out for college educa-
ton in this country each year cannot fall
short of s1OO.o00,0O0. a sum greater than
the entire civil expenditure of the govern
ment 96O0O, COO in 1899.
1t is fact that the United States spends
more pro rata for higher education than
any other country in the world. The
amount per unit of population invested in
colleges and universities is nearly twice as
great as in England, and more than twice
as great as in Germany, where, although
universities are numerous. their endow-
ments are much smaller than in this coun-
try. Yet the total holdings of the 1875
AMERICAN cOIeSeS ana universities repre-
sents an investment of only little more
than s. for each person in the country,
which Is not a large sum considering the
important place assigned to liberal educa-
ton by the founders of our republican gov
eminent.
A Few Wealthy Ones.
While the total wealth of our colleges
is s2J0.OOO,0OO or an average of S5S7 OG0 for
each, it is a fact that the greater part of
the total sum is in the possession of a few
Of the leading universities There are seven
institutions that have together property
worth s91, OOO,Ho or an average of s13, 900 :
oO0 each. This leaves an average of $3.50,
0o0 for the remaining 40. If the twenty
seven institutions having productive wealth
amounting to S1,OO0.00O or more We're de-
Quoted. 1t would he found that the average
endowment in productive funds of the great
majority Of American colleges is only $113,-
900.
Not only are our college endowments
larger than those Of any other country, but
the cost of instruction is greatest here.
The wealth of American colleges represents
an investment of 81 1925 for each o. The
115.0n1 college students In Great Britain
the average is about $3.50 for each student
while in Germany it is between $500 and
$500 This means that American professors
are better paid and that more money is
spent in college buildings and in scientific
and mechanical equipment here than abroad.
A Gift of $4,000. 900.
Mrs. Stanfords recent gift of $4,000, 600.
added to its previous endowment of 81, 800,
600 makes Leland Stanford, jr., the wealth.
lest educational institution in the country,
with one exception. The exception is
Girard College. in Philadelphia, which is
worth $4,000, 900, and has long stood at the
head of the list The work of Girard Col
lege however, is the giving of technical
and trade instruction, that the newly
acquired fortune Of the California univer-
sity makes 1t the richest of the institutions
devoted to higher education Next on the
list comes Harvard. with productive funds
amounting to $10,000.00O. The Cambridge
university is followed closely by Columbia,
Cornell and the University of Chicago
Contrary to general opinion. Yale has less
wealth than any of these, her productive
funds amounting to only 81, 100000.
The figures quoted show, not the total
wealth Of the institutions named. but the
amount from which their incomes are de-
rived. Counting in the property held by
them in buildings and equipment and the
total would be considerably larger. The
following table gives approximately the
wealth of these seven colleges: