A master plan in higher education is developed to address the academic and workforce needs of a particular state. The master plan helps serve as the roadmap for implementation of proposed strategies to reach state goals in education and degree attainment. In Tennessee, Drive to 55 is a state-wide effort to increase the number of Tennesseans with a…

For many students, developmental education is the largest obstacle to college success, hindering progress before they ever enroll in a college-level course. Postsecondary practitioners and researchers have been re-examining and challenging many traditional elements of developmental education from placement strategies to the sequence of courses…

Earning college credit in high school matters to students and parents. Students who earn college credits by taking a college-level course while in high school are more likely to enter college and succeed. Through these experiences, students become familiar with college expectations, academic behaviors, and habits of mind; get a head start on…

The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) and its 16 member states and territories (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawai'i, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, U.S. Pacific Territories & Freely Associated States, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming) work collaboratively to expand…

The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) and its 16 member states and territories work collaboratively to expand educational access and excellence for their citizens. By promoting innovation, cooperation, resource sharing, and sound public policy, WICHE strengthens higher education's contributions to social, economic, and…

The author argues that while outcomes assessment may be an imperfect process, if completed in a systematic and deliberative manner, it can help determine the overall direction, culture, and success of an academic department. Most important, assessment can spark meaningful pedagogical and curricular discussions that can lead to substantive academic…

Background/Context: Performance funding finances public higher education institutions based on outcomes such as retention, course and degree completion, and job placement rather than inputs such as enrollments. One of the mysteries of state performance funding for higher education is that despite great interest in it for over 30 years, only half…

Curriculum mapping is a versatile process tool that can help faculty discern whether different curriculum components align; and if not, what adjustments can be made. Through this process faculty create a graphic portrayal of the program outcomes, the courses that comprise the program, and their relationship to the program's purpose. This article…

The primary purpose of "National CrossTalk" is to stimulate informed discussion and debate of higher education issues. This issue contains the following articles: (1) The Celtic Tiger: Ireland Invests Heavily in Higher Education, and Benefits Mightily (Jon Marcus); (2) Western Classic: Nevada's James Rogers Is a Non-Traditional…

A recent five-state project, the National Forum on College-Level Learning, has demonstrated that learning, higher education's most important product, can be assessed in ways that make interstate comparison possible, that these assessments are consistent with other information known about the states, and that the results can be useful to…

Career and Technical Education (CTE) has evolved over the years to include a plethora of skilled training opportunities for both secondary and postsecondary students. While postsecondary programs are viewed as being on the "front end" of education's effort to prepare students for the workforce, it is often the secondary-level programs…