USA Funds and Truckee Meadows Community College in Nevada have partnered to promote a holistic approach to student loan debt management. The partnership has included implementing a financial literacy curriculum and peer counselors for TMCC students, communicating to student loan borrowers to promote successful loan repayment, applying analytics to better target outreach to borrowers, and […]
What is the value to institutions in making energy efficiency a priority? At the Lone Star College System, we have made it a priority to be as energy efficient as possible for a few reasons: We believe that if we can have the budget stability and predictability that results from being more efficient, we can […]
Managing personal finance is difficult enough for working professionals. For college students, it can be almost impossible. Part of the reason is that there are multiple finance-related aspects to higher education, and they have different, often confusing languages, says Nedi Goga, executive director of student financial services and compliance at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. “Financial […]
The number of Americans age 18 to 21, the traditional college age, has decreased by nearly 700,000 since 2011—from 18.1 to 17.4 million—according to research from the University of Virginia. With this decline, many colleges could turn to older non-first-time students to maintain enrollment numbers and financial goals. Yet, more than 2.5 million adult learners […]
In the business world, products sometimes price themselves out of the market and provide an opening for competitors. Because of strong demand for what they offer, universities have long been able to raise tuitions without triggering this effect. But today we have controversy about the burden of student loans (a movie expose, “Ivory Tower,” opened […]
Even in this age of tight budgets, college and university leaders are directing funds and attention to the all-important issues of institutional and student success. This is mission-critical because while the number of students attending college is increasing, the number of those who complete is not. The federal government reported a 31 percent graduation rate […]
Mercer University Bears football fans who enter the Macon, Ga., campus through the Stadium Drive entrance now pass the school’s new fountain and surrounding rain garden. The garden, which is 1.5 acres, is not only attractively landscaped—it serves a dual purpose by collecting rainwater runoff from nearby parking lots. Challenge The former tension pond near […]
Supporting local economic and civic projects is a central part of the mission for community colleges that rely on voter approval for funding. In Kansas, for example, voters elect the six members of their community college’s board of trustees, which levies taxes to pay for the school’s operating expenses. Residents, however, can challenge the board’s […]
Colleges and universities of all types and sizes are planning new investments in virtually all areas of operations as economic recovery entrenches itself in higher education, according to a University Business survey of campus leaders. Student success and retention, along with recruitment and enrollment, lead the way among the many areas that will see a […]
There exist an endless number of articles, books, blogs, and interviews on the state of higher education (HE) in America. The themes are consistent – fewer resources, fewer students, bloated administrative staff, less affordability, unsustainable student debt, poor graduation rates, unimpressive employability skills and what the heck is a MOOC and why should I care. […]
