Originally posted by seminole72:
Interesting but strange that the authors didn't begin the article w/ "what does Tallahassee, Columbus and Austin have in common?' They are all small towns that house both state governments and major universities. Those two factors create and sustain high paying jobs in government and education that require a level of education that is far above the national average or typical resident who grew up in those towns. If you add in the presence of Ann Arbor and Tuscon, the economic influence of large major universities in historically smaller towns that were once typically built around non-university high paying jobs, the pattern is more clear.
These results don't provide any insight into segregation bias in these smaller communities. What they do is record the astonishing growth of pay in universities over the last 50 years. Just stop and think. In virtually every state in the country, the highest paid public employee in the state is the head football coach. The salary of the president of these universities compares favorably w/ the governor of the state and rivals that of the typical income for the local independent business owner. Janitors at the university make much more than the Merry Maids that clean the local bank.
Interesting data poorly mined, imo.
