Leo Sadovy: End of ‘research’ universities

The demolition of a giant skyscraper or sports stadium is a pretty spectacular sight. And to think that what took years of skill and investment to construct could all come down in a cloud of rubble and dust in just a matter of seconds.

This is exactly what the Republican legislature has planned for us with Senate Bill 593, a bill to essentially force research out of UNC-Chapel Hill and N.C. State, turning them into empty shells of their former nationally esteemed selves and turning Research Triangle Park into just plain old Triangle Park.

This is primarily the result of the impoverished economic vision this crop of Republicans has for our state. Instead of preparing to compete at the high end of the scale against, say, California with its prestigious public university system, or with the powerhouses of the EU such as Germany, they have determined that we can do no better than to compete on low wages against Vietnam and Nigeria.

Take one last look at our state’s two premier research universities, because once this legislature pushes the plunger, neither us nor our children will see the likes of them again in our state in our lifetimes.

This story was originally published April 28, 2015 at 5:57 PM with the headline "Leo Sadovy: End of ‘research’ universities."