Educating Sarah Palin

GOP gal pal and newly beatified McCain vice-presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, had a much more diverse experience in higher education than has been previously reported in the media. 

Apparently she has attended at least five colleges in six years (final count might reach six in six).  Normally, that is not a good sign of someone who is academically ready for college or in any way studious.  Actually that kind of record is indicative of some serious problems or academic expulsion.  Perhaps the media will do its job and examine this issue.

The Associated Press reported that Palin, a first-term governor of Alaska with only experience as a mayor prior to that, began her college career at Hawaii Pacific University, where she studied for one semester in the fall of 1982.  Just one.  Did she go there to party?  Did she discover that she did not care for spam?

Then she spent two semesters at North Idaho College, a two-year institution that normally helps under prepared youth get into a four year university.  After that she had two semesters at the University of Idaho; one semester at Matanuska-Susitna College, a two-year campus of the University of Alaska at Anchorage; and her three final semesters back at the University of Idaho, where she completed her bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1987.

Isn't there a normal media investigation of the education, career, and activism of major party candidates?  Does Governor Palin have a body of journalistic work that can be examined? Remember that Senator Obama's written work has been closely reviewed in the media.  At least, we know his two books—actually written by him—are still on the bestsellers list.  There is no reason to not know what he says he thinks. Let’s see what the mainstream media do about discovering Palin's views and experience as well.

The more important issue here is whether or not she will fully understand the importance of science and technology at a sophisticated level.  Will she appreciate the value of a broad liberal arts education and give support and money to these enterprises?  We all recognize that education is not very high on the Republican agenda in general (look at the cuts education and education initiatives have taken in the past eight years). Furthermore, Palin herself does not have respect for scientific evidence as demonstrated by her suggestion that we teach creationism alongside evolution as equally viable points of view.  Governor Palin does not realize that one is science and the other is faith.  This does not bode well for higher education if she has a hand in setting education strategy and policy.