@ujm There are a lot of contradictions and machlokesim in how the post-war 20th century gedolim spoke and acted on college, so “I heard from a talmid of Rav Moshe that said that he once heard….” doesn’t mean anything. Besides, I don’t know what put that bee in your bonnet regarding colleges. We’re talking about basic knowledge, not Masters Degrees.
I repeat: At the end of the day, in our times, we as Jews are not tzaddikim gemurim, so everything we do is b’dieved because of that. We need basic understanding of a variety of subjects (other than just Gemara and halacha) to get by in the world. Parnoso is one reason. Being able to communicate effectively to non-Yeshiva people is another. Understanding the changes in society and technology and how to understand it through the lens of halacha is a third. The trend of lack of education in todays Yeshivos, and the cloistering of certain communities, is a terrible thing that is damaging Klal Yisroel to zero benefit. In comparison, the damage that some MO communities do by insisting that co-ed high schools are good and proper, is miniscule.
While on the subject of FrumTeens, didn’t Rav Shapiro spends pages and pages of pixels trying to explain how his father taught in YU?