Evergreen State College, the far left institution that gained infamy last year for its “day of absence” that saw white students encouraged to leave the campus for a day, is facing a 10 percent budget cut for 2018-2019, according to the Daily Olympian.
Conservative commentators jumped on the announcement, asserting that the school’s reputation for liberal extremism appears to have finally caught up with attendance.
In addition to planned budget cuts, the school will also be hiking student fees, in some cases significantly. The newspaper reported that the “wellness fee” will spike to $420 a year, and the services and activities fee goes to $649 per year for full time students. The “new student” fee climbs to $275.
As noted by the campusreform.org website:
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“The announcement comes nearly a year after the college was rattled by riots following former professor Bret Weinstein’s decision to question the school’s “day of absence,” which involved asking white students to leave the grounds for a day of off-campus programming while students of color participated in on-campus workshops.
“After besieging Weinstein in his classroom, student protesters proceeded to hold (College President George) Bridges and several other administrators hostage in the president’s office, temporarily refusing even to let Bridges use the bathroom unless he agreed to adopt their demands for additional diversity-related initiatives.”
That incident made national headlines, and many believe it was an embarrassment from which the school is having a difficult time recovering. The New York Times published an opinion piece on the incident under the headline “When the Left Turns on its Own.”
“You could be forgiven for thinking that Mr. Weinstein, who identifies himself as ‘deeply progressive,’ is just the kind of teacher that students at one of the most left-wing colleges in the country would admire. Instead, he has become a victim of an increasingly widespread campaign by leftist students against anyone who dares challenge ideological orthodoxy on campus.
“This professor’s crime? He had the gall to challenge a day of racial segregation.”—Bari Weiss, New York Times, June 1, 2017
The Washington Times took a slightly tongue-in-cheek approach with its coverage of the budget problem, calling the college a “place of higher learning — and that phrase ‘higher learning’ is used here loosely…”
There have been calls for Bridges to step down. Over the years, there have even been suggestions to close the college.
It doesn’t appear now that the doors and windows will be shuttered, but this might be a signal that this ultra-liberal college may be forced by circumstances to bring its philosophy and reputation back toward the center.
