Yeah, I get the point, but the OSU example is for an extensive rec center, not a water park. The OSU in-state tuition looks very reasonable, at under $8K a year. They have lots of good merit aid, so any kid who is a decent student should not have a lot of debt coming out of OSU.
Some facilities are over the top, but don't the students expect some sort of rec facilities? It isn't easy to know where to draw the line. The really high dollar projects can be bashed, and you don't want to see a gym with just a few exercise bikes and a couple of sets of free weights, so what is okay?
What really drives me nuts is the every kid should attend college mentality. That makes for lots of four year vacations and lots of debt. If those kids are encouraged to take other, more suitable career paths, they won't be feeding into the tuition debt mess. You are left with the more academic kids who don't need the frills. Address that misguided idea of college for all and many of the lazy river projects will disappear. Then tuition will stabilize. But good luck convincing colleges to follow the high road and not accept students who are not college material (but will pay).
