I have concluded that the state is killing the school. I'm not saying strictly from underfunding its public universities which is only about 20% of operating costs these days. There are several doctoral programs that would thrive at this school but are not allowed by the state. That is costing Ohio University graduate tuition, skilled professors, and reputation in general. Listening to the debate on here about professional schools vs. liberal arts programs, strong professional schools are important and Ohio has them (Engineering, Business, Medical, Journalism, Education) but a lot of today's top students want progressive liberal arts programs. The reason I attended the school was that it had my professional program of choice and I could get it at a place with a quality liberal arts environment. That is why its head and shoulders above Ohio State in my mind because you can get the best of both worlds. Alan is right in that many ways its Berkley east. One thing that is lacking is community outreach which is big and a partnership for community supported agriculture. That would attract more top level progressive grad students and spit in the face of OSU's agribusiness machine. The state wants to fund Phd programs and research centers of excellence. For Ohio that is Energy and the Environment (Engineering, Sciences), Health and Wellness (Medical, Rural Outreach) and the Media (Journalism, Communication). To bolster the state economy it makes sense to distribute the money to a few focus areas, I agree with that and let the state stick its funding into higher education for research. Outside of that there is really no reason to subsidize the university for FTE undergraduates. Let Ohio University then set tuition equivalent to the lower end of private schools in the region instead of an artificially low rate for a top level university while removing any limitations on PhD programs. I know that its going to cost the average student more but they will go to OU anyway. I'm definitely for giving scholarships for needy students to offset the higher tuition too its just that the school is leaving a lot money on the table from those that can afford it. There was a time when the university had to stick with the state back in the 70's when half of the budget was coming from the legislature and the school couldn't stand on its two feet alone. Today with the attractive professional schools and the private money rolling in the state is doing more to hurt the school than help. 

I have concluded that the state is killing the school. I'm not saying strictly from underfunding its public universities which is only about 20% of operating costs these days. There are several doctoral programs that would thrive at this school but are not allowed by the state. That is costing Ohio University graduate tuition, skilled professors, and reputation in general. Listening to the debate on here about professional schools vs. liberal arts programs, strong professional schools are important and Ohio has them (Engineering, Business, Medical, Journalism, Education) but a lot of today's top students want progressive liberal arts programs. The reason I attended the school was that it had my professional program of choice and I could get it at a place with a quality liberal arts environment. That is why its head and shoulders above Ohio State in my mind because you can get the best of both worlds. Alan is right in that many ways its Berkley east. One thing that is lacking is community outreach which is big and a partnership for community supported agriculture. That would attract more top level progressive grad students and spit in the face of OSU's agribusiness machine. The state wants to fund Phd programs and research centers of excellence. For Ohio that is Energy and the Environment (Engineering, Sciences), Health and Wellness (Medical, Rural Outreach) and the Media (Journalism, Communication). To bolster the state economy it makes sense to distribute the money to a few focus areas, I agree with that and let the state stick its funding into higher education for research. Outside of that there is really no reason to subsidize the university for FTE undergraduates. Let Ohio University then set tuition equivalent to the lower end of private schools in the region instead of an artificially low rate for a top level university while removing any limitations on PhD programs. I know that its going to cost the average student more but they will go to OU anyway. I'm definitely for giving scholarships for needy students to offset the higher tuition too its just that the school is leaving a lot money on the table from those that can afford it. There was a time when the university had to stick with the state back in the 70's when half of the budget was coming from the legislature and the school couldn't stand on its two feet alone. Today with the attractive professional schools and the private money rolling in the state is doing more to hurt the school than help.