This mentions the salaries of the professors, but I did not see any discussion about other faculty members. I wonder if they purposefully did this. In my current engagement, we discussed how knowledge can be withheld for various reasons. We did a project in which we tried to find the origins of our dining hall food, who cooks the food, and how much these individuals get paid. It was difficult to find some of this information. Through our discussion, it became clear that universities and corporations often make it easier to access positive information than negative information. This controls the perception one creates. I think they may have only talked about professors due to the presence of unpaid labor in the form of slaves. Although, we know they had slaves, it seems clear that they did not want to draw attention to this.

This line also states that the professors’ salaries will be from the tuition fees. This also relates to my engagement as we discussed the rising cost of tuition and how some universities are transforming into business as they prioritize money over education. I do not think that this was the case when the Rockfish Gap Report was written as it discussed the ideal version of the University. Therefore, it would embody the characteristics that Jefferson frequently emphasized, such as the importance of an education. However, it is important to realize how the intentions of a university shifts as time progresses.

This sounds like the general requirements we take now; certain subjects are required for students to take. I think it is interesting that they said “certain science shall be taught.” This suggests that they are trying to control the topics that the students learn about, molding them into what the school thinks they should be. I think students now have more freedom in what they study. The university offers a large range of subjects, and the student decides what they want to study. This allows students to pursue what interests them. The document indicates that this was not previously the case. This could be problematic, as students may not feel passionate about the science they are forced to take, or they may have a skill that is overlooked because it is considered less important.