I thought we were in a recession. But just recently I saw the University of T&T (UTT) advertise eight (8) staff positions in the Performing Arts department, including a professor of trumpet. LOL.
Sorry to use text abbreviations in a letter, but there is no English word that can capture the absurdity of that sentiment. I understand that class sizes in UTT’s performing arts are around 5 – 10 students. Does that really justify the hiring of (most likely) foreign expertise during a major recession?
Prime Minister Keith Rowley argued during the budget debate that offering free tertiary education was a luxury the country could afford when the price of oil was high, but cannot be justified now.
Well by extension good doctor, could we justify hiring foreign academics for a handful of students pursuing a degree that contributes solely to culture and nothing to the economy? Why not redirect that focus and funding to the education and engineering degrees which are more highly populated student-wise?
Darren Chatoo
Couva