In a small college, application of management by objectives concepts for planning and management have been used in three areas: personnel, programs, and budget. Interrelationships of these areas are discussed. Procedures are explained and results are illustrated so that these concepts can be used in other circumstances. (MSE)

Bradford College (Massachusetts), a small liberal arts college, used creative planning to revitalize the institution despite fiscal constraints. Decisions and actions since 1981 are reviewed in terms of first steps (revitalizing faculty affairs), finding a new president, reorganizing the curriculum, planning noncurricular changes, and developing…

Reviews the reasons for conducting institutional assessments regardless of college size. Identifies the elements of institutional effectiveness and translates them into six questions with quantifiable answers, which when tallied produce an overall assessment of program effectiveness. (DMM)

Strategic planning can successfully counter crises threatening a college's survival by clarifying the mission, by shaping institutional reorganization and curriculum development and by focusing marketing efforts and attracting new support. Crisis background, financial exigency, and reorganizing strategically are discussed. (MLW)

There are many excellent scientists in the natural and human sciences in Canada's small universities. If the institutions implement internal procedures to encourage and foster a research climate and if research councils consider alternative strategies for research funding, research productivity could expand greatly in quality and scope. (MSE)

A case study of a small, private, selective college that made institutional changes to respond to needs of disabled students found that changes needed to effectively serve this group are complex and multidimensional. Six key factors facilitating organizational change are identified, changes are cited, and suggestions for further improvement are…

A telephone registration system for first year students implemented at Alma College (Michigan), involves having freshmen confer with advisors during orientation week, then having the registrar's office contact the advisors. Despite limitations, the low-tech solution works well at extremely low cost. (MSE)

Administrators at Bowdoin College (Maine) have translated lessons learned from the process of administrative software conversion into ten commandments for other small colleges undertaking such changes. Three approaches to management information systems are outlined, with advantages and limitations highlighted, as well as the ten recommendations,…

Faced with an enrollment decline of 36 percent in the last three years, New England College (New Hampshire) has developed a long-range plan for making itself smaller. Changes which are being made include: (1) reducing the number of faculty; (2) reducing the amount of student housing; (3) adding another person to the fundraising staff; (4) offering…

Proceedings of the 1982 CAUSE national conference on information resources for college management are presented. The 41 presentations cover five subject tracks: issues in higher education, managing the information systems resource, technology and techniques, small college information systems, and innovative applications. In addition, presentations…

Small colleges' and universities' personnel organizations have major differences in needs and functions, but small colleges can take practical measures to handle their needs, including: direct lines of authority from the president, preparation of a staff handbook, and use of consultants, professional associations, written resources, training…

The planning and implementation of a computerized management information system at a fictional small college is described. Nine key points are made regarding department involvement, centralization, gradual program implementation, lowering costs, system documentation, and upper-level administrative support. (MSE)

Describes Southeastern Community College's efforts to focus on the arts, which included a campus visit by the artist Kenneth Larson and events centered on his Heroic Individual prints; a performing arts series supported by local corporations; an Associate in Fine Arts degree; regular art exhibits; and an artist-in-residence program. (DMM)

Management by objectives (MBO), a participative management process, is discussed with specific reference to helping small colleges deal with enrollment and financial decline. Recommendations for implementation of MBO and some common pitfalls to be avoided are included. (BH)

This paper presents the results of a qualitative study of the leadership of nine presidents who have accepted the risks and challenges of executive leadership in nine small Midwestern colleges. Focus is directed toward these presidents' risk-taking strategies with respect to the major leadership challenges of being a senior executive of a small…