Lessons learned by five small, private colleges about meeting the challenges facing higher education are described. Each of the colleges developed a unique educational program emphasizing the liberal arts that responds to current challenges. Each school has experienced increased enrollments and retention, growth in endowments and plants, larger alumni giving and foundation support, and enhanced quality in academic programs. The presidents of the colleges were brought together to see if there were common threads in their institutional experiences and whether what they learned might be useful to other colleges. The following are the colleges and their presidents: Alverno College (Joel Read), Bard College (Leon Botstein), Birmingham-Southern College (Neal Berte), Bradford College (Arthur Levine), and Scripps College (John Chandler). After the presidents' meeting, their conclusions were shared in a symposium with 25 outstanding American educators, scholars, journalists, and business and association officials. The lessons can be summarized as follows: (1) the present is a time of opportunity for American colleges; (2) sound management is essential for colleges today, but it is not enough; (3) focusing on education is the best remedy for the challenges facing colleges and universities today; (4) colleges can prosper by embracing the liberal arts; and (5) colleges of all types have the ability to succeed today. The institutional mission of each college is reported in an appendix. (SW)