Learning Resources

Abstract: Sustainability guidelines for campuses typically focus on the environmental, structural, and organizational aspects of colleges and universities. The Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES) expands the definition of campus sustainability by including “Socially Equitable” design guidelines that consider how people interact with and within campus landscapes. Landscapes that afford (1) mental restoration and (2) social interaction become sustainable under the SITES definition. This study conducted at Agnes Scott College and The University of Georgia tests the criteria associated with these guidelines to determine their relevance and impact. Through mapping exercises, direct observation, and a questionnaire survey, data were collected from 120 students to determine which “sustainable” criteria are relevant to campus landscapes. The findings confirm the criteria listed in the SITES guidelines and introduce additional criteria to consider for enhancing Socially Equitable design standards on campus.

Abstract: Camden, New Jersey, a city of 80,000 located directly across the Delaware River from center-city Philadelphia, is, by any index of urban decay, one of the nation's most distressed urban centers. While severely ineffective, the city houses the essential building blocks of future recovery: branches of four colleges and universities and two major hospitals. A failure to recover during one of the strongest economic upturns in the nation's history, coupled with an unfortunate history of corruption and mismanagement, caused the state legislature to take two extraordinary actions to stabilize and revitalize the city: installing a state-appointed chief operating officer for the city, whose powers supercede those of the mayor and council, and putting forth an investment plan for the city that built upon its remaining institutional strengths in higher education and health care. A working group, the Camden Higher Education and Healthcare Task Force, was formed by the city's higher education and health care institutions at the behest of key legislators to coordinate their development efforts in order to advance the recovery of the city.

Abstract: Recruiting and retaining women and minority faculty members is a particularly challenging workforce development issue facing many universities. This article summarizes current literature and the results of a survey of selected institutions to gauge responses to this challenge. All the survey respondents indicated that recruitment of women and minority candidates has been problematic, that retention problems vary, and that job placement is difficult and can negatively influence the recruitment and retention of women and minority faculty members. Job placement for partners has been most difficult for those universities located in small- to mid-sized cities. A variety of programs have been attempted to alleviate problems of recruitment and retention.

Abstract: Effective benchmarking demands continuous change with equal emphasis on identifying the goal and understanding why the goal is important. In this article, the authors suggest analytic frameworks that might be useful in moving benchmarking from a tracking and monitoring exercise to an organizational process that informs the strategic decision making of university administration.

Abstract: Book review of Truth and Consequences: Colleges and Universitites Meet Public Crises, by Jerrold Footlick. ACE/Oryx Press, 1997. 192 pages. ISBN 0-89774-970-7. Pull quotes: "The press is not likely to change how it operates, so universities need to learn how to deal with the media more skillfully."

Abstract: Reflects on the growing trend to link construction and renovation with income-producing schemes: conferences, institutes, receptions, lectures, and other special events organized by outside groups in need of appropriate facilities. Focuses in particular on retail and hotel accommodations and fitness facilities as primary vehicles for generating revenues.