I always learn from and enjoy the comments made by readers of this blog, print media and through social media like Twitter.  One comment struck me this week, in particular, that cast light on a growing and persistent problem within higher education.  How do we create a pipeline between higher education sectors to benefit our…

A survey of the state of American higher education in 2014 presents a distressing picture. Enrollments are off –in some cases seriously — translating to substantial and unbudgeted revenue shortfalls. Higher education is labor intensive with up to 60 percent of the budget at some colleges tied to labor. Labor costs, along with health care…

One of the recurring themes making the higher education circuit these days is that “Paris is burning . . . and higher education’s leadership – including trustees, faculty, and most presidents – is pretending that nothing is happening.” There is truth to this argument. The facts support the claims by many thoughtful educators that better…

On Thursday, January 16, 2014, President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama met with more than 140 education officials from public and private colleges and universities, corporations, foundations and non-profit groups to talk about college opportunity. Organized by White House economic adviser, Gene B. Sperling, the event drew pledges from the group for new…

This week Richard Vedder, an Ohio State economist who runs the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, and his student, Christopher Denhart, ran a provocative piece in the Wall Street Journal on “How the College Bubble Will Pop.” They argued “the benefits of a degree are declining while costs rise.” Looking at earning potential, Professor…

At many American colleges and universities, the athletic program is something like a machine that runs unto itself – parochial and inward looking, defensive, and quite separate from the academic program. While athletics support a residential learning experience, the number of student athletes contributing to a balanced admissions class, the win/loss record, and the ability…

Some one once asked me what a president does all day. They thought, like so many others, that presidents held out tin cups traveling the world searching for alumni with money. I replied that presidents are better thought of as King Solomon determining how to divide the baby. They behave most days as nineteenth century…

For many candidates seeking presidencies at American colleges and universities, one of the first questions asked is often what percentage of students participates in Greek life? It goes beyond the lasting impressions – overwhelmingly negative — created by Animal House. These candidates see Greek life as an impediment to leadership. Schools with high concentrations of…

Moody’s Investors Service released its outlook for higher education in 2014. Looking at Moody’s interpretation of a survey of net tuition revenues, Scott Carlson called the report “grim” in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Moody’s suggested that weak economy will impact families capacity to pay. They noted that federal budgetary concerns, including a potential sequestration…

In the late 1980s, 20th Century Fox distributed a teen romantic comedy called How I Got Into College. The movie followed the adventures of Marlon as he pursued the “girl of his dreams,” Jessica. Jessica hoped to attend a fictional Pennsylvania institution, Ramsey College, which advertised to prospective students that it sought “more than the…