Professors’ Priorities

I heartily agree with your comments in today’s editorial “Why Don’t Teachers Teach More” (April 10) and support the views of Stanford President Donald Kennedy (front page, April 6).

There are other reasons though that professors are a rarity in the classroom. One is the funding process. Professors are far more “valuable” to the institution in the view of many presidents if they can generate research dollars. Many of these projects are manned by graduate students anxious to get in their field and not too demanding when it comes to financial renumeration. Perhaps more divisive is the funneling of many of these dollars to the foundations where the monies generated can be spent without the strict governmental overview otherwise required.

The publish-or-perish principle must go, and the rewards handed to those who train efficient personnel for industry. Many of the papers generated to qualify for advancement would really not affect society on the whole.

ERIC DAVID

Long Beach