Nothing Certain But Death & Taxes? Not for Higher Ed.

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL Rick Seltzer reported recently in Inside Higher Education on a complex decision by Princeton University to settle litigation with neighboring homeowners who argued that the University was a profit-making institution and therefore subject potentially to millions of additional dollars in taxes annually. Arrangement Doesn’t Settle Issue of Tax Exemption The arrangement…

Grading Higher Education: When Worlds Collide

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL One of the most persistent problems facing American higher education is how best to explain its importance and enduring value to the public. The problem is that various perspectives shape the approach utilized. Higher education leadership – especially at the research universities and the liberal arts colleges – often speak to…

The Stubbornly High Cost of Doing Business

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL In the Hechinger Report’s recent story, “University Bureaucracies Grew 15 Percent During the Recession, Even as Budgets Were Cut and Tuition Increased,” reporter Jon Marcus examined the confounding trend that many university systems are showing “new resolve . . . to improve the efficiency and productivity of stubbornly labor-intensive higher education”…

Politician for President? Consider This.

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL Some politicians make good college presidents, at least on paper. As Rick Seltzer reported in Inside Higher Education last week , the best possess many of the same skills as successful college and university presidents. They are typically well connected with outside stakeholders, enjoy good name recognition, and know how to…

Look Beyond Elites for True Picture of Admissions

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL For thousands of high school students, October marks the start of the college application season. Application deadlines approach, standardized tests and essays are finalized, and this year, an earlier deadline for the FAFSA financial aid application. In a series of reports last month, seasoned higher education journalist Scott Jaschik presented some…

New Report Paints Data-Rich Picture of US Higher Education

POSTED BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL Reporting in last week’s Inside Higher Education, Kasia Kovacs reviewed the findings of the Commission on the Future of Higher Education, an initiative of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Dr. Michael McPherson, co-chair of the commission and a well-respected economist,…

Not clickable: Congress Subcommittee Review of Tax-Exempt College University Endowments

Congress & the Myth of Big Endowments

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL On September 13, a House subcommittee holds a hearing that, according to Janet Lorin in Bloomberg , “is set to look at how colleges, through their tax exempt endowments, are trying to reduce tuition.” The subcommittee hearing features testimony from policy experts and college officials. It’s an interesting time to examine college endowments. As Ms.…

Parents: Don't Muck Up College Move-in Day

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL It’s August. For many families, it’s time to participate in a celebrated American ritual: moving a son or daughter to college. While thousands of parents and children bid each other farewell after moving belongings into a dorm room, the experience is acutely personal. Every child has a different and unique relationship…

What's Behind College Leadership Failures?

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL In September 2012, I began contributing to the national conversation about higher education by tackling the concept of leadership in one of my first blogs for the Huffington Post. In that first article, I suggested, “the job has evolved, but the national imperative for presidents to lead as well as govern remains…