From 2016 to 2020, ten smaller schools in one regional library consortium participated in a user needs assessment project. This article documents the process for implementing a collaborative user needs assessment by utilizing the shared interest and enthusiasm of a team of librarians to create a consortial toolkit. The toolkit supplied direction…

It looks like the fate of many small colleges is closure, "merger" (meaning effectively being swallowed up by a stronger institution) or even-subject to regulatory complexities-acquisition. That is not good news for the colleges, their staff, students, alumni, surrounding communities-nor for the higher education sector as a whole.…

With the support of a grant from the Sloan Foundation, nine computer scientists from liberal arts colleges came together in October, 1984 to form the Liberal Arts Computer Science Consortium (LACS) and to create a model curriculum appropriate for liberal arts colleges. Over the years the membership has grown and changed, but the focus has remained…

Initiating a consulting model for librarianship in a small college library involved a transition to an organizational model that defines positions by their relationship to constituencies. As a case study of such a transformation demonstrates, such an ''outward'' looking organization has resulted in an increased number of instruction sessions,…

Small colleges can be effective in consortial arrangements because they are more independent and often less fiercely competitive than larger institutions, making better personal relations possible. The Associated Colleges of the St. Lawrence Valley in northern New York, with four member institutions, has expanded student opportunities, shared…

A consortium of 12 small, private liberal arts colleges in the Great Lakes region has shown that by working together, the institutions can provide major opportunities for faculty professional development through conferences and workshops. (MSE)

The Atlanta University Center, Inc., a consortium of six institutions (Clark, Morehouse, Morris Brown, Spelman, Atlanta University, and Interdenominational Theological Center) represents the world's largest nucleus of Black private higher education. Its background and the problems faced in dealing with each institution's desire for autonomy are…

The Great Lakes Colleges Association, composed of twelve small liberal arts colleges in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, has been a leader in the integration of women's studies into the curriculum of its member schools. The consortial approach and the women's studies program are described. (MLW)

Points out the vital role of the small/rural community college in providing equal access for higher education services to rural communities; unique community service activities (e.g., cultural enrichment programs, professional workshops, and prison education); and cooperative service projects with four-year institutions. (DMM)

A consortia model for colleges within a short distance of each other is described. Particular attention is given to the components of consortial infrastructure: the policy board and the role of the deans, the consortium director, the campus program coordinators, and the students' departmental boards. (Author/MLW)