Scott: Florida doesn't need more anthropology majors

UPDATE: Anthropologists respond.

Spending money on science and math degrees can help Floridians find work and provide a return on taxpayers' investments, Gov. Rick Scott said today in an interview on "The Marc Bernier Show" on WNDB-AM in Daytona Beach.

Scott said Florida doesn't need "a lot more anthropologists in this state."

"It's a great degree if people want to get it. But we don't need them here," Scott said.

"I want to spend our money getting people science, technology, engineering and math degrees. That's what our kids need to focus all of their time and attention on: Those type of degrees that when they get out of school, they can get a job."

Scott also mentioned toll roads as a good investment of state dollars.

Scott's transportation secretary, Ananth Prasad, rolled out a plan in August that would speed up road-building projects, including the Veterans Expressway in Hillsborough County, and create new tolls to pay for it.

On the radio today, Scott pointed to tolled express lanes on Interstate 95 in Broward County. The lanes are for registered car pools, hybrids, motorcycles and anyone else who wants to pay a toll.

"It took the rush hour traffic for the non-tolled lanes from 25 mph to 45," Scott said. "For people not paying the toll, it was a big benefit.

"So we're going to start doing that across the state."

Comments

[Scott is a Crook]

Scott should teach a class on how to rip off the system and get rich in the process.
He is an expert at it.

[Dt]

I know a lot of engineering firms facing layoffs so the hard sciences aren't necessarily the key to success, look at all the out of work engineers and scientists on the Space Coast!

[amigay]

Scott will never promote something unless it first benefits him personally and second it benefits his buddies.

[FL_Butch]

Anthropology is clearly not a science. *sarcasm*

[T]

Name a Research1 institute lacking an Anthropology Department... oh, thats rite, you can't.

You cut the Anthropology Department at FSU. For every $1 that department cost to run, it received a $1.50 in grants. Do the math and the research. Anthropology is not only a science, its cost effective...

BTW those toll lanes are a waste of lanes, and all those who can't afford the toll with a blue collar actually have an increased time in traffic...

Not that I'm bitter or anything...

[Richard Allbritton]

Governor Rick Scott saying we don’t need Anthropology should surprise no one. I wouldn't be surprised if he said we don't need psychology, sociology, English (beyond grammar and spelling), literature, languages, or philosophy. These courses impart general knowledge, rational thought, and critical thinking. They form the core of what makes our society care about us as humans and helps us to elect quality politicians.
Rick Scott a business and law school graduate interested in mergers and acquisitions. On the face of it, none of that is bad. Except that Scott seems to have missed the courses that taught ethics and how to build and maintain companies and societies that care about humankind and others. Learning from history was clearly missed.
When I was in engineering school, as an undergraduate, one of my professors learned my minor was English. This professor was in business and a professional engineer; he taught as a way to give back to his community. He told me he regretted not taking more liberal arts courses when he was in college, because they add to the quality of life and it is especially important after you are successful in business.
Fortunately, Scott does not reflect the values of most Floridians. In the closest governor’s race in Florida in 134 years against a charisma-challenged opponent, had he ran an honest campaign and not poured $85 million—including $73 million of his family’s money—into getting elected, he would not be governor. Unfortunately, we will have to endure Scott and Florida will not get anywhere near the number of jobs he promised. Already, he is backpedaling on his promise of job creation. This is indeed a very dark period for Florida. ~ richard allbritton, Miami, http://rallbritton.blogspot.com

[Ilwood]

Perhaps anthropology department should spend more time making sure that their deeply in-debt graduates find full time employment; i love anthropology, but coming out 40gs in debt and not being able to find a job is not what we need.

[CL]

Isn't the conservative mantra supposed to be something like 'Big government shouldn't over-regulate?' He's talking tolls and trying to tell students what they can and cannot study. That sounds a lot like over-regulation to me.

[Florida Anthropologists Against Rick Scott]

Sounds like Rick's got some bad blood from flunking out of an Anthro101 class. Anthropologists don't just do academic research, we're forensic analysts (crime scenes), ethnobotanists (pharmacology), and geneticists (disease research) to name a few. Liberal arts degrees matter for both the economic AND social welfare of our community! "Florida Anthropologists Against Rick Scott" on Facebook!

[Emily Meaden]

So, who would have to do the federally required survey before laying down the proposed highways? Oh, that's right. Archaeologists. Huh.

[Maria G]

he Governor of my state is planning to cut funding to the already slashed budgets of liberal arts programs in Public Universities and shift it towards other subjects he deems "more important". This is unacceptable, as every student deserves a quality education in whatever field the choose to study, and these subjects are important in creating engaged and well rounded citizens. Please sign my petition to let Governor Scott know that you won't stand for students and educators being treated this way.

http://www.change.org/petitions/gov-richard-scott-stop-rick-scotts-plan-to-hurt-liberal-arts-and-social-science-programs

[Natalie Fincik]

Rick Scott isn't telling anyone what degree to get. With all the budget cuts he needs to appropriate funds to essentials. If you want to get a useless degree that you'll never use, GO FOR IT. Just don't expect the taxpayer to subsidize your waste. Get a job and pay for it yourself.

[Leo Falcon]

Anthropologists are underpaid and unappreciated thanks to idiots such as this "governor". I used to work for the Dept. of State as a Cultural Anthropologist (Folklorist). Not only were we within the wrong department (Historic Preservation) but we were paid less than anyone else in the department. When things were bad, we were the first on the firing line. I wonder if he really knows what we do and how much we contribute to society.

[Jim]

With the type of jobs that are florida is producing we nee more people with a degree in hamburgerology.

[Patrick]

I feel Rick Scott wants to eliminate liberal arts and just form technical workers who cannot form critical opinions, he wants to create jobs but he doesn't care about what type of jobs, if it means more people getting low paying jobs he'll be satisfied, and that is not what Florida needs, it needs a system where everyone can maintain a good quality of life, he's a millionaire and all he cares about is maintaining himself in power and his friends, people who are rich cannot be politicians because they have no idea what it is to be a normal everyday american, so how can they decide our laws.

[Kirsten]

I have been told by a student of anthropology that in Florida if you major in Anthropology you get a BA degree, not a BS. To me this suggests that UF does not consider Anthropology a science no matter how Brogan defines it.

At U of PA one gets a BA with a major in pure Math.

It appears that STEM is a muddled definition interpreted as each state or university pleases.