Learning Resources

Abstract: A state mandate to increase undergraduate enrollment, the aspiration to achieve an Association of American Universities institution profile, and a desire to become carbon neutral—we'll discuss how the University of California (UC) Riverside negotiated these competing challenges while developing its master plan. Innovation is key while achieving access improvements, research aspirations, and environmental stewardship objectives. We'll share how community college districts, private colleges, and other institutions are implementing practical solutions to the new century's challenges while maintaining the institution’s sense of place and heritage.

Abstract: Designing libraries based on student experience rather than book storage provides the potential to cater to a wider variety of students and learning styles, transforming libraries from an afterthought for prospective students to an asset for recruitment. This session will use recent library projects to study the effect of major program shifts on student behavior and discourse. We will look at both larger capital improvement projects and “small wins” that can be readily executed.

Abstract: The Tennessee Promise has become a cornerstone of Tennessee’s higher education initiatives and has propelled the state to the forefront as a national leader in supporting higher education opportunities for high school graduates. Through a state-established endowment, the funding for the first two years of community or technical college is available to all high school graduates. The program combines student timeliness in complying with requirements and completing service activities, community mentors and involvement, high school counseling and marketing, and college engagement. This article provides an explanation of the Promise program and an overview of its implementation at two distinct Tennessee community colleges.

Abstract: The article discusses the challenges that community colleges face in increasing college degree completion in an era of budget reductions and fiscal constraints. The analysis draws on data collected in the 2011 Survey of Access and Finance in which responses were obtained from all 51 members of the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges (NCSDCC).

Abstract: This article surveys the impact of state oversight and fiscal policy on universities’ revenue structures with special attention to tuition and state appropriations. It highlights the difficulties that arise for financial planners who face increasing state oversight, diminishing state support, and significant reliance on increases in tuition and fees. It also considers the impacts of restrictive state fiscal policies on financial planning. The author suggests that as institutional planners seek out the factors affecting revenues, it is sensible for them to consider the consequences of state oversight and state fiscal policy in their assessment of the internal and external fiscal environments.

Abstract: So, what’s happening ‘down under’ in campus sustainability? Providing an international context, our authors use Australian examples to describe planning for campus greening, learning for sustainability (curriculum), institutional learning, and competency-based training initiatives.

Abstract: Subtitles: Response to the cuts; Thinking anew; The knell and the new. Pull quotes: "Prospects for a return to robust state appropriations seem dim." "What formula should states use to fund their public institutions?" "Each institution would thus have different cost bases." "The time for across-the-board tuitions caps may have passed." "Tuitions in the state should be more variegated, not uniform as they are today."

Abstract: The process of devising a financial strategy to enhance its academic distinction began at Rutgers, a large, public, research university, in 1980 with a not uncommon statement of the Rutgers Board of Governors that sounded like many other mission statements. It used the expected phrases: continue development as a national and international resource by improving quality of instruction, research, and service; increase emphasis on scholarship; expand graduate and research areas of excellence; enhance programs to serve society's needs for broadly educated, humane, competent professionals to serve New Jersey's needs in education, business and industry, public policy studies, government, and other areas. But the Rutgers board did not see the statement as a platitudinous expression to be said and forgotten, and called upon the University administration to implement the statement with all due speed. What follows is the story of its implementation and the results of that action.