Oberlin College building with text overlay: Oberlin's Financial Crisis is Sobering Lesson for Higher Education

Don’t blame liberal campus culture for Oberlin’s enrollment headache

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL Last month, Rick Seltzer reported in Inside Higher Education about a brewing controversy at Oberlin College, which is facing a significant financial shortfall. The College, including its prestigious Conservatory, faces a multi-million dollar deficit caused largely by lower-than-expected enrollment. A group of trustees charged with looking into Oberlin’s shortfall found that…

adult female and male students in classroom

Can Boomer Students Help Colleges’ Bottom Line?

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL In a recent Wall Street Journal article entitled “Baby Boomers Looking for Reinvention Try College — Again,” Douglas Belkin notes that “adult students have been a growing force at universities for more than a decade – mostly blue-collar workers or those pursuing advanced degrees focused on getting new skills.” Looking at…

Pennsylvania map with text Reimagining Higher Education's Role in Pennsylvania

Reimagining Higher Ed’s Role in Pennsylvania – and Beyond

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL In a thoughtful commentary on Philly.com recently, Pennsylvania State Treasurer Joe Torsella, offered an insightful perspective on Pennsylvania’s #1 national ranking for most college debt per student, a dubious distinction. The level has reached $35,000 at graduation, or roughly the price of a fully loaded, full–sized new car. It’s a growing…

The Growing Federal Attacks on Higher Education

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL It’s hard to imagine how deeply the policies of the Trump Administration will affect America’s colleges and universities. As a group, these institutions are already undergoing substantial disruption. 

The old financial models under which most  higher education institutions operate no longer work. The current path for many of them is not…

college classroom with text: Rethinking Public Perceptions of Higher Education

Have Colleges Lost Battle of Public Perception?

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL There are a number of reasons why higher education no longer enjoys the level of status and prestige that it once did in American society. Public perceptions that confuse sticker price and the cost of attendance, the unwillingness or inability of many American families to share the financial burden incurred by…

text: preparing for change in America's colleges and universities

New Computer System as College Change-Maker?

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL America’s colleges and universities are in the early stages of dramatic change. For many, the concentration has been on the development of new academic programs, designed to differentiate academic offerings among institutions and create new revenue streams. For others, efforts to find efficiencies internally or through participation in consortia have improved…