It costs less to attend Princeton than Prison?

I was shocked when I read this today.   Newsflash: It costs less to send someone to Princeton than it does to pay for one inmate in prison.

The comparison between higher education spending and correction spending highlighted in the following chart is not perfect. Universities have means to fund themselves; prisons rely on the government.  This is why it makes sense that more of our tax dollars go directly to the prisons rather than institutions of higher learning.

I'd rather have the opportunity to choose whether or not I want to send my tax dollars to help a student in need to get into Princeton, or fund the prison system.  What would you prefer?


Created by: Public Administration