"The big money from both private donations and research grants from the Feds / Province goes to the Engineering, Law, Business and Medicine faculties. This is the universities primary focus. The emerging / colleges-evolving-into universities such as MacEwan, NAIT are being positioned to cover the rest"
Which is understandable from certain angles and absolutely abhorrent from others. While there are other colleges etc. filling the 'gap', the University of Alberta and all universities are there for enlightenment and learning which simply cannot be accomplished without a strong focus on arts, literature, and other liberal arts.
"The University of Alberta’s vision since its inception 100 years ago has been to be one of the world’s great universities for the public good, an institution for the “uplifting of the whole people” in the words of our first president, Henry Marshall Tory. Today that vision endures and is built upon a foundation of institutional values, vision, mission, and cornerstones. In Dare to Discover President Indira Samarasekera outlines our blueprint for greatness as we enter our second century. "
IMO this cannot be achieved without strong support of the arts in all forms.
__________________
"The destructive effects of automobiles are much less a cause than a symptom of our incompetence at city building" - Jane Jacobs 1961ish
Wake me up when I can see skyscrapers
|