Reply to Why are people mad that kids of principal donors are institutional priorities?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Trickle-down economics / Reaganomics, as we all know, did not really work in practice and exacerbated wealth inequality. Evidence suggests that wealth often stays at the top rather than trickling down to workers through increased wages.

The same idea applies here. When the ultra-wealthy donate massive sums to already wealthy universities, who can assure that the money will "trickle down" to disadvantaged families and help increase access to an elite education? Sure, Bloomberg and Johns Hopkins is a notable example. But in many other cases, we aren't so sure how the donation will be spent – sure, it might benefit the institution by creating another research center or revamping athletic facilities. But in my opinion, expanding access and increasing financial aid budgets are far more important than creating yet another lab (which are important, but not top priorities).[/quote]

The majority of endowment money is encumbered by stipulations on how is may be deployed. If donors want their money to support Financial Aid they just stipulate the use. This is why endowments aren't nearly as flexible as many believe.[/quote]

My argument was that many posters in this thread fail to recognize that many of the donations don't actually trickle down to help underprivileged families – and these donors aren't as "noble" as they're painted to be.[/quote]

Where do you think the donations go? Do they have to go into the pockets of certain families to be noble? Why wouldn't the donations indirectly benefit students at the university include the "underprivileged"?[/quote]

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