UBTech open keynote speaker Richard Baraniuk, of Rice University, talked to a full house about an initiative to create a library of free, high-quality textbooks for college courses and how that can impact the debt crisis facing students. His organization, OpenStax, has—at a cost of about $1 million each—published a series of free, peer-reviewed open-source […]
With apps now a fixture on the vast majority of campuses, colleges and universities are no longer debating whether to develop their own mobile platforms. Instead, they are creating the next generation of apps for students who turn to their smartphones for everything from checking their grades to checking their laundry. As of last fall, […]
A decline in high school graduates and students applying to more institutions are what one expert sees as the two main reasons more colleges and universities are struggling to meet their admission yield targets. The average yield rate among four-year colleges and universities fell from 42.9 percent in 2009 to 36.9 percent in 2012, according […]
Regardless of function, many of the facilities completed within the past year on college and university campuses were designed to create connections. These buildings may help campus groups and departments collaborate, or they may enhance town-gown relations. Linking the facility to other parts of campus through a deliberate architectural feature is another way project planners […]
There have been continuous outcries in recent years for colleges and universities to lower their costs, yet in almost every area those costs continue to rise. We all know that health care premiums, utility bills and food are among costs that are beyond a college’s control. Institutions also must spend to deliver new or enhanced […]
Authentication and identification of active campus network users have always been at the core of the IT applications necessary to run a university. If you can’t log in, you can’t get your email, register for your course, pay your bills, and so on. That’s why most institutions have strived to offer integrated and secure single […]
Five years after the Great Recession's official end, higher ed endowments and fundraising are finally recovering, but there is no rising financial tide that's lifting all boats—especially smaller ones that depend heavily on tuition. Instead, a new "economic normal" is being keenly felt at smaller, tuition-driven universities and colleges, forcing campus leaders to diversify their […]
Ball State University has selected Paul W. Ferguson as its 15th president. He comes to the Indiana school from The University of Maine, where he has been president since 2011. Ferguson led a comprehensive strategic planning process there called "The Blue Sky Project," which focused on transforming both the undergraduate and graduate student experience. He […]
Identifying students who are at risk of student loan default and establishing ongoing communication with those students are two key strategies for minimizing borrower default. Financial aid administrators should include these strategies and more in their default prevention programs, so borrowers are aware of their repayment options and less likely to default. This web seminar, […]
Cultivating a campus culture that embodies both global diversity and interconnectivity should be central to the mission of universities today. Reminders persist that our current environment and economy are not confined to our immediate geographic surroundings. Modern-day technologies, transportation, international trade, and politics significantly diminish distances that used to seem great. At the University of […]
