There is a horrific injustice lurking in the shadows of academia, turning our college community into a bastion of selfishness and greed. This gross injustice is brought upon by an unfair system that rewards the rich and impoverishes the poor. This disgusting system is our collegiate grading system.
It’s insane that in this millennium, Texas A&M allows an elite few with 4.0 GPAs to parade around campus while thousands of students live in academic squalor. There is no reason why these few should receive the bulk of academic scholarships, admission into competitive colleges and majors and later receive preferential treatment for graduate school or in job searches.
For the sake of equality it is imperative that Texas A&M recognize this issue and student government should immediately take up legislation to address this gross academic imbalance.
To mitigate GPA disparity in the interest of fairness I would suggest using federal effective income tax rates.
According to the Tax Policy Center a la 2007 (the most recent numbers I could find), broken down by quintile, this policy would mean the highest quintile of GPA earners would be taxed at 14.4 percent, the next at 6.2 percent, the middle quintile at 3.3 percent, the second to lowest quintile at -0.4 percent and the lowest quintile at -6.8 percent.
Looking more closely at the highest quintile, this would mean that the top one percent of GPA earners would be taxed 19 percent, the top five percent would surrender 17.6 percent and the top 10 percent would give up a mere 16.2 percent of their GPA for the greater good.
I would actually push for even higher rates on those top GPA earners who unfairly receive the majority of academic wealth. If we are ever going to help the poor and middle class GPA earners, we need shared sacrifice.
When it comes to fairness, our president had it right on the campaign trail in 2008 when he said, “I think when you spread the wealth around it’s good for everybody.”
This seems obvious when so many college students are struggling with grades.
To paraphrase another presidential quote, at a certain point, you’ve made high enough grades.
There is just no reason that students blessed with higher intelligence or more work ethic should get all of the academic pie. How do we expect those low GPA earners to succeed when the good grades are hoarded at the top?
It is absolutely pivotal that Texas A&M address this absurd disparity. Those who don’t make the best grades deserve a chance at academic success as much as anyone. These elite students who studied in high school and are breezing their way through college by attending classes, studying hard and being responsible are ruining academia for those less fortunate — those who, through no fault of their own, don’t do as well in school.
There is a virtual monopoly on high GPAs, making it almost impossible for someone who cares less about studying and more about enjoying college life to advance in academic society.
It’s time for A&M to stand up for the little guy. It’s time to end this corrupt capitalistic academic farce that only rewards the high GPA earners and make sure every college student gets his or her fair share of academic success.
Taylor Wolken is a senior economics major and opinion editor for The Battalion.