[combusean]

This discussion is whacked.

If you know anything about the history and politics of ABOR, the Arizona Board of Regents, is despite the fact that Phoenix was desperately lacking in a medical school but ABOR, guided by Tusconian beliefs has always vetoed that notion of ASU building a medical school.

The initiative that birthed the ASU expansion downtown was always sidelined around the biomedical campus and joint university cooperation. The brief partnership that existed between ASU and UofA in Downtown in that district was always touted as a joint endeavor. I have a hat from the era that shows the one place ASU's and UofA's logo exist on the same fabric for the only point ever.

It's clear that didn't work. ASU bailed as far as it could from Downtown with the Mayo Clinic, Tucson expanded into Downtown. University politics are wretched and I don't care about why.

FWIW, Arizona's higher education is just broken. ASU is far too large and creates these "ASU everywhere" programs that should just be independent campuses instead of pigeonholing students into generic degrees far and away from the main campus and where they live. It should be something like Cal State where multiple degrees are offered at different campuses, UofA could be a better higher form of education like the University of California system that is harder to get into but similarly delivers geographic results.

And then we have AZ's Community College system, especially Phoenix College and MCC that are left pissing into the wind and are completely underutilized. ABOR doesn't want you to get a 4 year degree there no matter what.

It's ridic that Arizona has so many government agencies fighting with each other to prevent student success.