Over the past decade, strategic enrollment management (SEM) has become a major force in the organization and practice of higher education. With limited financial resources for financial aid, institutions must balance the need to attract and admit a freshman class that fits well with the institution and also provide the necessary financial support…

Securing appropriate facilities can be a significant challenge for those intending to open a charter school. Although, like all public schools, charter schools receive per-pupil dollars from the state, they generally receive considerably less. Additionally, because traditional public schools rely on their district to provide their school…

Developing a vision of the future and deciding how an organization will look and function in that future are essential ingredients of planning for organizational success. This handbook offers tools for strategic planning and conducting needs-assessment studies. Chapter 1 describes societal changes in the United States and its impact on education.…

The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is a strategy to involve the community in active participation in the development, amendment, and review of the local plan for special education. The CAC originated under the design of the California Master Plan for Special Education. The CAC brings together and supports parents and professionals, regular and…

Designed to provide Oregon vocational directors and teachers with a process for collecting information to be used in evaluating and planning vocational education programs, this handbook presents guidelines for both local annual planning and long-range planning. Various items to consider when reviewing an existing program are covered, including…

This guidebook describes how successful change happens and how change agents can organize their work to make it happen. It is designed to help change agents in various organizational settings understand the dimensions of the problem and the social situation; organize a plan for change; know what to look for and what to avoid in one's self, team,…

Guidelines for North Carolina public schools that are interested in developing and submitting plans for outcome-based education (OBE) pilot programs for the years 1993-94 and 1996-97 are offered in this document. The OBE program is based on the premise that all students can learn and focuses on the expectations for achievement necessary for…

A school district's long-range facilities plan is a compilation of information, policies, and statistical data about the district. The plan enables the district to determine and select among the alternatives for allocating facility resources to achieve the district's objectives while meeting community needs. This guide contains information on the…

Environmental planning requires more than finding the right technology and a source of funds. Planning involves consideration of the social, cultural, economic, and natural environments in which the project occurs. The challenge is to develop sustainable food systems that have reasonable production but do not degrade the resource base and upset…

A guide to consulting in higher education designed for consultants and college personnel interested in engaging consultants is provided. It is based on principles distilled from actual consultation experiences in college settings. In 1980, the Association of American Colleges (AAC) began a consulting service for member organizations (Project…

To ensure that school systems are prepared for the future, their boards must provide for both internal and external conditions through careful assessment and planning processes. Strategic planning consists of setting long-term goals, determining the best means of attaining them, and relating the chosen course to operating plans. This type of…

Dramatic shifts in national demographic trends, changes in public expectations of the educational system, recommendations by prestigious study groups for significant educational reform, and fluctuations in rates of economic growth and social change have invalidated planning techniques suitable to a stable educational environment. Planners using a…

Four exemplary programs that effectively plan and coordinate transitions between early intervention programs and preschool/elementary programs are described. They include Project BEST (Building Effective School Transitions), Projects STEPS (Sequenced Transition to Education in the Public School), Project TEEM (Transitioning into the Elementary…

Increasing demands for accurate forecasts in such areas as student enrollment, energy expenditures, and facility capacity are placing new demands on the institutional researcher. A variety of forecasting models and methods are available, all to be used with caution in long-range forecasting. (Author/MSE)

A formal environmental scanning system designed to identify emerging issues, events, or trends threatening or bringing opportunity to an institution is discussed that uses a committee to systematically collect and analyze data from a variety of sources. (MSE)