The skill set required for today's top jobs in higher education has never been more extensive or demanding. Boards of Trustees are looking for leadership in several areas: academic authority, fundraising ability, public relations and media savvy, legal and political sensitivity, as well as ease of movement between constituent groups—alumni, students, faculty, parents, donors, business […]
Several years ago we shared with University Business readership our prognostications on contemporary polytechnic institutions popping up across the U.S. In relatively short time, higher ed is still surfing the Polytechnic Revival wave at engineering schools, colleges, and universities across the Nation. The common heritage of Classic Polytechnics extends back to the 1745 founding of […]
On Aug. 19, The New York Times published an op-ed titled “Stop Colleges from Hoarding Cash,” written by Victor Fleischer, a law professor at the University of San Diego. Fleischer’s primary point is that very wealthy universities (he focused on Yale, and its $24 billion endowment) spend more money compensating their fund managers than they […]
Decades ago, U.S. Sen. Claiborne Pell eloquently stated: “The strength of the United States is not the gold in Fort Knox or the weapons of mass destruction we have, but the sum total of the education and character of our people.” Shortly thereafter, Pell backed up his statement by sponsoring legislation to provide grants to […]
One of the more demanding jobs in higher ed belongs to the provost—the chief academic officer. With ever-widening fields of responsibility, the position often consists largely of on-the-job training. James Martin and James Samels, authors of UB’s online “Future Shock” column, expect their new book will help change that. The Provost’s Handbook: The Role of […]
Community colleges have achieved the goal of providing broader and cheaper access to higher education. Now, experts and administrators say, the focus must turn more aggressively toward student success and completion.
States that have not offered veterans discounted tuition at public universities are now required by law to do so, reflecting the oft-nomadic lifestyle of vets and their need for greater access to higher education. In-state tuition for this group, which includes 17 states and the District of Columbia, became nationally mandated on July 1, 2015, through […]
Study abroad has been reserved traditionally for upperclassmen, but institutions that include Michigan State, Kent State (Ohio), Florida State, American University (D.C.) and the University of New Haven (Conn.) are offering students the chance to learn overseas before or during their first year of college. Michigan State launched Freshman Seminar Abroad in 2003 with organized […]
Fans at a University of New Haven football game might notice an odd sideline sight: medical personnel with their heads hunched over smartphones. But these athletic trainers are not checking text messages or updating their Facebook status. Rather, they are monitoring real-time data about the force of their players’ on-field collisions. In 2013 the Connecticut […]
The Association of American Colleges and Universities recently delivered a wake-up call to both students and administrators about how well prepared college graduates are for the world of work. The survey, which was completed by both college students and employers with more than 25 employees, showed students consistently rated themselves as “well prepared” when employers […]
