A rapidly growing number of higher education institutions nationwide are implementing advising technologies--including education planning, counseling and coaching, and risk targeting technologies--to help students plan their academic paths and stay on track to graduation. Research suggests that these technologies may improve support for students…

In a time of transformation in higher education, "Leading Change: How Boards and Presidents Build Exceptional Institutions" fills a significant void in leadership literature and focuses on the changing level of board engagement. This book examines 18 institutions, across the spectrum of higher education, at which the board played a…

From all sides, academia is being prodded to be ever more innovative. Not only are faculty expected to create knowledge from which solutions for our social, physical, and economic ills will spring, but all segments of the university must deal with new modes of communication, new business models, and even new ways of processing thought. This…

The lingering economic downturn has affected virtually every American institution--perhaps none more significantly than the nation's higher education system. These days, facing significant revenue shortfalls that are widely recognized as the "new normal," state-supported colleges and universities are looking, sometimes desperately, for…

Discusses the post-Civil War movement for democratic and social reform in U.S. colleges, particularly those in Pennsylvania. Focuses on the efforts of James P. Wickersham to increase state control of universities and high schools in order to develop a centralized educational bureaucracy. Concludes that Wickersham's ideas provided a foundation for…

This discussion treats the state-owned institutions of Pennsyvania as an educational system. Justification for such a view is traced in the historical roots, legal and functional development, and current mission of these institutions. To assess the effectiveness of this system, enrollment patterns and degree output are examined, first in…

Pennsylvania's 10-year-old system of 14 state-owned universities has focused on increasing the stature and character of individual institutions, limited centralization, and fostered cohesion and cooperation rather than competition, particularly in difficult economic conditions. (MSE)

This report examined state tuition prepayment programs (STPPs) in Alabama, Alaska, Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming, focusing on how the programs operate and the participation rates they have achieved. It also assessed the income level of program participants, options for increasing the participation of lower-income families, and…

An evaluation of the faculty workload in Pennsylvania's state-owned higher education institutions is presented. Tabular and text data show: faculty workload in terms of full-time equivalent (FTE) student/faculty instruction ratio, student credit hours, student-contact hours, and credit-hour cost; relationship of average full credit-hour cost per…

Discusses policies of Pennsylvania's Secretary of Education, Eugene W. Hickok, Jr., which include encouraging colleges to graduate more students in four years, stressing the need to improve the academic rigor of core curricula and teacher education programs at state universities, increasing state student financial aid, and encouraging for-profit…

This report presents the problems of rural Pennsylvania and proposes solutions to those problems. Because the news media does not systematically report on rural situations, the public lacks awareness concerning the problems in rural Pennsylvania. Rural problems include high unemployment rates, high welfare expenditures, out migration, low…

The relationship between faculty bargaining and the loss of institutional autonomy is explored by examining the collective bargaining experience of the Pennsylvania State College and University system. The study is chronological, tracing the theme through three stages: (1) the governance of the state system before collective bargaining (1960-71);…

This is the third study conducted to analyze the transfer pattern of community college students in Pennsylvania. Information sources were student followup data from the community colleges and enrollment data of all higher education institutions. The followup data showed that the trend from 1970 through 1973 had been a rather consistent…

A case study reviewing the process of establishing Penn State Great Valley (the first permanent campus facility erected in a corporate park in the United States) is presented. This is a tangible symbol of the degree to which American universities are reaching beyond traditional boundaries to serve adult learners who are place bound and often well…

This document reports the results of an annual study of Pennsylvania community college transfer students and compares the results to those of previous studies. Data for the present study were obtained from those four-year institutions which received transfer students during the summer and fall of 1975. Results indicated that transfers totalled…