Learning Resources

Abstract: Edited by Karen L. Webber and Henry Y. Zheng
Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore: 2020
324 pages
ISBN: 978-1-4214-3903-7

Abstract: A long-term decline in birth rates raises fundamental planning questions for higher education as the pool of 18-year-olds contracts after 2025. This Planning for Higher Education series explores how planners and leaders can use the time we have to prepare for some of the most wrenching changes in a generation. This article, Part 1, surveys the planning horizon as we emerge from COVID-19 and describes the challenges ahead. Part 2 considers specific planning strategies institutions can adopt to meet the challenge. Part 3 tackles perhaps the most daunting challenge: how to mobilize institutions to actually do what needs to be done, however inconvenient (or worse) that may be.

Abstract: Having been on both the inside of regional accreditation and outside looking back on it, Lynn Priddy knows that accreditation has long tried to revolutionize itself, while at the same time increasingly becoming subject to federal regulatory burdens and expectations from the Department of Education. That has backed it into becoming a bureaucracy at the very time it needed to break out to focus on innovation, learning, and student success.

Abstract: An Optimizing Academic Balance (OAB) analysis provides colleges and universities with effective tools to use in making strategic academic decisions needed to stay competitive in the context of institutional mission, program quality, market potential, cost, and revenue. The Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities recently completed a three-year statewide OAB project with the participation of 13 higher education institutions. The results supported the colleges and universities in making tough decisions.

Abstract: Data analytics related to student and institutional performance have evolved quite rapidly—and continue to advance—as the field of data science captures more attention across the higher education sector. And while data-informed decisions can help institutional leaders achieve their goals, there are increasing examples of analyses or visualizations that, when presented without the proper framework, result in misinterpretation and inaccurate conclusions. Context is critical, and erroneous deductions may lead to decisions that adversely affect student performance, program development, and policy changes.

Abstract: This article explores the impact of tuition increases on student retention and higher education admission and retention planning for racial and ethnic minorities. Research shows that the racial and ethnic minority student population on campus is negatively affected by tuition increases. Literature is examined for potential impacts of tuition increases on a student’s decision of school choice. And although literature provides little in the way of recommendations for resolving the issues associated with tuition increases, this article offers some suggestions for student retention planning.

Abstract: Due to the rising price of tuition, the prevailing narrative regarding higher education is that the cost of delivering a college degree is increasing substantially. However, the cost of delivering an education is not definitively linked to the price in tuition paid to attend. Prior studies confirmed small increases in instructional expenditures per full-time-equivalent student from the 1980s to 2000; however, more recent trends in instructional costs are relatively unknown. The purpose of this study was to track instructional expenditures from 2004 to 2015 at U.S. public two-year and four-year institutions, and to calculate those expenditures as a proportion of U.S. Gross Domestic Product.

Abstract: College campuses provide an ideal setting to promote walking. This article reviews best practices for campus pedestrian planning, identifying how campuses have sought to increase pedestrian travel, reduce parking demand, and improve physical activity among students, staff, and faculty. Through case studies of 18 North American universities, we analyze common practices and innovative strategies. We find that while campuses tend to avoid siloed pedestrian planning efforts, there are a range of innovative design, marketing, and analysis strategies being put into place as part of wider campus master planning efforts and programs to support alternatives to the private car. When it comes to innovative treatments, such as shared streets, roundabouts, and pedestrianization schemes, campus projects can provide leadership for the wider community as well.

Abstract: Efforts to create a more sustainable campus need to address issues of transportation. While greater bike use provides environmental, economic, and social benefits, it still represents a small fraction of campus transportation. One way to increase the number of bike riders is through a bike-share system. This article reports on the potential demand for a bike-share system at Kent State University, a fairly large public university (28,000 students) in northeast Ohio. Like at many universities, Kent State students are not likely to use bikes for commuting purposes. Yet our survey indicates that while there is demand, there are also several impediments. An existing second-generation bike-share system has been very popular but has not quite addressed the issue of commuting. A new next-generation bike-share system—with station-to-station renting—may be just the program to promote the more practical use of bikes and help shift the dominant mode of transportation away from automobiles.

Abstract: U.S. transportation data suggest that the number of vehicle miles traveled has far surpassed new capacity, resulting in increased traffic congestion in many communities throughout the country. This article reports on traffic congestion around a university campus located within a small town. The mix of trip purposes varies considerably in this context, with the majority of trips related to student movement to and from classes. The university itself becomes a major traffic generator, but in a complex way. This article describes how congestion in a university setting differs from that in a nonuniversity setting; what components drive this congestion; how best to reduce this congestion while adhering to overall university planning objectives; and how to set a foundation for traffic management strategies that provide environmental, social, and economic benefit to the university and, importantly, to the surrounding community. The information presented here applies beyond the campus setting to any community that contains nontraditional traffic generators and shows why context does matter when analyzing and managing traffic.