Conspicuous consumption: College takes field trip to brothel
posted at 11:55 am on April 11, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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When I attended Cal State Fullerton, I can’t recall taking a field trip to anywhere, let alone one to visit Alicia the Prostitute and her loyal cat Meow-Meow. Randolph College apparently believes in the broadening experience of higher education, as its American Studies program sponsored a trip to the Chicken Ranch, a legal brothel about an hour outside of Las Vegas. What was the point? A study of “the ideas that consume us”:
The brothel tour was a natural fit for a class that tells students “don’t just study America — live it,” said Julio Rodriguez, the director of the college’s American Culture Program.
Each semester the course examines a strain of American culture and ends with a class trip. Past destinations included post-Katrina New Orleans, Walt Disney World and the Civil Rights Memorial Center in Montgomery, Ala.
This year’s focus on Nevada started with a professor’s interest in water rights and conservation. It grew to include discussions of the wedding and entertainment industries and, inevitably, prostitution.
I took a number of political-science classes at Fullerton State in 1981-82, which would make that progression a lot more obvious than water rights as a source. Let’s play Six Degrees of Ashley Dupre on this: political science leads to policy formation, which leads to Congress, which leads to earmarks, which leads, inevitably, to prostitution. Or, political science leads to the creation of laws, which leads to their enforcement, which leads to Eliot Spitzer. Your pick.
There’s nothing terribly objectionable about this field trip, but there’s nothing rather edifying about it, either. The attendees are all adults, not children, and can make their own decisions about whether to do in-depth research into prostitution on their own. Most people would agree that there are other expressions of American life a little more deserving of focus for college students than the legal bordellos of Nevada, though, and that may include the parents footing the bill for the education that Randolph College is supposed to provide their sons and daughters. Randolph’s own Virginia environs gives it access to hundreds of sites critical to American history and far worthier of consideration than hookers 2,500 miles away.
Randolph College is one of the most expensive institutions in the nation. According to Peterson’s, it costs each student almost $35,000 per year, including room and board. The part-time tuition fee of $1,060 per semester hour probably matches that of Alicia, sans Meow-Meow.
Perhaps in the future, Randolph should stick to places like post-Katrina New Orleans and the Civil Rights Memorial Center, or perhaps Gettysburg and Yorktown. If the faculty finds itself obsessed with thoughts of brothels after studying water management, then perhaps Randolph needs to find ways to get their professors out of the classrooms in more productive efforts, too.
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SECOND LOOK AT AUDITING A CLASS AT RANDOLPH COLLEGE
Enrique on April 11, 2008 at 11:58 AM
So did the students see Spitzer or Bill “Bubba” Clinton there?
VikingGoneWild on April 11, 2008 at 12:01 PM
*cough* Did the class rolls include one Eliot Spitzer, or the husband of Senator Stabenow? Maybe Vitter, as well?
Of course, we’ll find out the class is being taught by guest lecturer William J. Clinton, too.
Sheesh; for 35K a year, you can get almost…. let me see, isn’t that about 7-8 hours with Ashley Dupre.
Vanceone on April 11, 2008 at 12:02 PM
I think you’re reading way too much into this. Was the class trip in bad taste, yes. Was it way to form future policy formation, very seriously doubt it.
Torch on April 11, 2008 at 12:02 PM
I think the trip would make more sense if the class were about prostitution or “social deviancy.” But don’t really see the point of going to such a “seamy” place when the Hoover Dam or even a casino would be more relevant.
One of my more interesting classes in college was in fact called Social Deviancy, and taught by a guy who spent time in jail for selling pot. Learned about everything from Times Square hustlers to neo-nazis. No field trips, though.
Tom_Shipley on April 11, 2008 at 12:02 PM
Remember, kids: always pay cash.
I mean, it’s not deductible, is it?
mojo on April 11, 2008 at 12:02 PM
I’m going to back to college!
Or
Rosie has a new reason to finish up her degree!
lorien1973 on April 11, 2008 at 12:06 PM
We weren’t even allowed to drink beer during bowling class when I was in college. So I looked the prof in the eys, walked over to the payphone, dropped the class, bought my beer and then resumed bowling.
And he couldn’t do a damn thing to me. Took raquetball the next sememster. Sadly, it wasn’t in a bowling ally, so no beer.
robblefarian on April 11, 2008 at 12:08 PM
Why are liberals always going to ridiculous lengths to “educate” us about things that most of us know anyway?
Or can easily find out by surfing the internet?
Who exactly doesn’t know about the seedy underside of adult life?
Just because liberals are obsessed with the base and have a juvenile fascination with all things sexual, why do they insist actual thinking adults must indulge them?
This is as useless as public schools bringing in idiots to show students how to don condoms. Anything to waste time and to avoid teaching anything that isn’t “edgy” and “exciting”.
NoDonkey on April 11, 2008 at 12:12 PM
all i care about is who the chick in the screencap is, and where can i meet her?
ernesto on April 11, 2008 at 12:13 PM
ROFL!!
SkinnerVic on April 11, 2008 at 12:13 PM
An oxymoron?
Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 11, 2008 at 12:16 PM
That’s Alicia. It looks like she’s sitting on a tarp. Is that work-related equipment? Could she claim that as a deduction on her taxes?
Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 11, 2008 at 12:22 PM
I just went to the college website, saw this and thought, I hope not their not too hands on….
“Expert faculty become hands-on research partners in Randolph’s groundbreaking Summer Research Program.”
Segue on April 11, 2008 at 12:22 PM
Thinking of the big picture about academia and wisdom, it amazes me that the piss-poor Athens of 25 centruries ago produced so many wise men from a small popluation base, but the Harvard faculty today which draws from a pool of our entire overpopulated world is a bastion of fools. Maybe, I could learn to love the word “decadent”. I should go reread Allan Bloom’s Closing of the American Mind.
We can certainly understand why Obama does so much better than Hilary among highly educated voters. They are as frivilous as Obama’s rhetoric.
thuja on April 11, 2008 at 12:23 PM
Mama’s place where the customer always comes first.
Could any professor resist telling his students, and if you don’t get A’s and B’s this is where you’ll end up?
Speakup on April 11, 2008 at 12:23 PM
My first trip to a stip joint taught me lessons about capitalism and human nature I’ll never forget.
TheBigOldDog on April 11, 2008 at 12:23 PM
The Political Science class got there before them.
profitsbeard on April 11, 2008 at 12:40 PM
Universities have been whoring themselves for decades. They might as well sponsor a field trip to a whorehouse - Congress.
OhEssYouCowboys on April 11, 2008 at 12:46 PM
Oh come on — America needs a college course where students are hoping to get a pair of Ds.
jon1979 on April 11, 2008 at 12:47 PM
She’s bouncy looking.
fossten on April 11, 2008 at 12:49 PM
Didn’t Elliot Spitzer go to this school at one time?
pilamaye on April 11, 2008 at 12:49 PM
This is just another step in the “there are no values” “all cultures are relative” anti-conservative bias in academia. Hey, it’s “transgressive”, it’s good.
eeyore on April 11, 2008 at 12:49 PM
What, no video links?
Zaire67 on April 11, 2008 at 12:54 PM
Is this connected to global warming in any way? Is it hot in here?
d1carter on April 11, 2008 at 1:03 PM
Enrique, It would be cheaper just to fork over the price of the whore. Or were you looking for side of respectability with your prostitute main course?
al sends
afterdarknesslight on April 11, 2008 at 1:08 PM
I went to college on the govt’s dime, so I may be mistaken here, but isn’t auditing a class free?
James on April 11, 2008 at 1:11 PM
At that cost they should be bringing the hookers to the kids!
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 1:12 PM
You don’t meet her. You call for an appointment.
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 1:13 PM
The trip was going fine until the inevitable “I’m first” argument broke out.
awake on April 11, 2008 at 1:32 PM
Who called shotgun?
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 1:39 PM
Man, looks like I went to the wrong college!
LT Nixon on April 11, 2008 at 1:43 PM
So…where’d ya get the screencap?
MadisonConservative on April 11, 2008 at 1:45 PM
So no one’s going to go for the easy comment on this? No one?
Anyway, it sounds like they were studying all aspects of Nevada — of which water rights was just the first — so they took a field trip to Nevada, a small portion of which visited one of Nevada’s major industries. That they were spending a semester on Nevada seems rather odd, although, as the fastest-growing region in the U.S., not totally uncalled for. And it sounds like the house of ill repute took up only a little of a trip they were taking anyway. It would be interesting to get student comment on this. If the students can’t justify the trip to Nevada — and to the brothel — then we know for sure it’s a waste. The quote they chose isn’t promising in that regard:
However, journalists have a way of taking the dumbest, most watered-down, out-of-context quotes and publishing them, so hopefully the students getting more out of the trip than “fun.”
calbear on April 11, 2008 at 1:48 PM
You better stock up on penicillin before you go on one of those field trips. Oops. Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up reality. After all, these are college professors and students who know so much more than the rest of humanity.
Larry L. Sharp on April 11, 2008 at 1:50 PM
“You call for an appointment.”
No online scheduling?
No wonder they call it the world’s oldest profession, they are stuck in the dark ages.
NoDonkey on April 11, 2008 at 1:52 PM
They had to go. It’s a required field trip for these students who are majoring in hooterology.
RMCS_USN on April 11, 2008 at 1:54 PM
Here.
RMCS_USN on April 11, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Womans Studies.
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Paulene’s, WKU, Bowling Green, Kentucky, 1963. That’s all I have to say about that.
easy on April 11, 2008 at 2:07 PM
Ohhhh. I thought that the $1060 included the cat. Never mind.
chsw (sarc off)
chsw on April 11, 2008 at 2:10 PM
Ok I had been contemplating going back to college to get my masters…this settles it, I’m going back!
Liberty or Death on April 11, 2008 at 2:14 PM
Hurry up and make your spring break reservations.
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 2:16 PM
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 2:16 PM
Holy snikey! Just made a post-it note to stick on my monitor that reads, “Make sure it’s work friendly before clickin!!!!!”
Just wasn’t thinking there when I clicked.
Torch on April 11, 2008 at 2:21 PM
James, auditing a class is not free. You simply do not receive a grade for the class. It still costs.
al sends
afterdarknesslight on April 11, 2008 at 2:29 PM
Ooops. I apologize.
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 2:34 PM
So what kind of souvenirs did the little kiddies bring home?
Just A Grunt on April 11, 2008 at 2:37 PM
I’ve never heard of someone paying for auditing a class. Generally, people who are already students audit, and they aren’t allowed to have their assignments graded or take the tests, but they don’t have to pay for the extra units, since they’re only warm bodies in a class. Some teachers allow non-students to audit and some don’t. The only time I tried to audit a class while not a student at the university in question, I was denied, but that may have had something to do with the nature of the class in question.
calbear on April 11, 2008 at 2:39 PM
When I went the University of Michigan, one of my (Arab Muslim) professors brought the prostitutes to us (we didn’t make the field trip). The prof’s name was Luis Sfeir-Younes. It was a “psychology” class.
Debbie Schlussel on April 11, 2008 at 2:41 PM
Fools! They went to investigate Meow-Meow.
Captain America on April 11, 2008 at 3:22 PM
They had it in for Alicia.
Captain America on April 11, 2008 at 3:25 PM
The College kids could have seen more high priced whores on a visit to the California state legislature.
mcgilvra on April 11, 2008 at 3:26 PM
peacenprosperity on April 11, 2008 at 2:34 PM
Not a problem…..wait, why is my boss here with security? Uh-oh…
Just kidding. hehe
Torch on April 11, 2008 at 4:06 PM
Let’s face it, we all went to the wrong college.
Merovign on April 11, 2008 at 4:38 PM
I would just like to point out that until last year Randolph College was an all girls schools. It is very likely that all the students on this trip were female. Randolph just wants to be sure its students know of all available job options when they graduate with that leberal arts degree.
Buford on April 11, 2008 at 4:42 PM
Bah, leberal = libral
Buford on April 11, 2008 at 4:43 PM
“The Chicken Ranch”?
Tzetzes on April 11, 2008 at 4:58 PM
RobCon on April 11, 2008 at 6:06 PM
Chicken Ranch with a side of Crab(s)
americaslaststand on April 11, 2008 at 6:17 PM
That’s not too far from the truth. My friend that used to crew-chief an IMSA Porsche GTR race team would stop on his way to the Northwest in Portland, OR. There you will find a strip joint AND steakhouse called Acropolis. He made a point to go there with the team, feed them, do laundry next door and get a load of boob in the process.
He joked that if he didn’t get enough fake crab on his salad, they might shake him a couple extra for a good tip!
SkinnerVic on April 11, 2008 at 11:28 PM
I’m guessing the cure for the strain in this culture is a hefty dose of Penecillin…
landlines on April 12, 2008 at 1:30 AM
They haven’t even been co-ed for a year, and they’re already visiting brothels? Ha!
rosewaning on April 12, 2008 at 10:18 AM