With an eloquent, and original, comparison of the Holy Family's faith and decisions surrounding acceptance of unexpected gifts to that of families who have one or more children with disabilities, the authors of this article capture an aspect of faith rarely captured within the previous arguments presented for why Catholics must embrace their call…

In this interview, Dr. Ozen Guven talks to Dr. Mary Mendenhall, Sonia Gomez, and Emily Varni about their research on teachers and teaching practices in contexts of forced displacement. Mendenhall, Gomez, and Varni recently authored "Teaching Amidst Conflict and Displacement: Persistent Challenges and Promising Practices for Refugee,…

Much of the literature on social class and language study in schools argues that for middle-class parents and their children, languages are chosen for their capacity to offer forms of distinction that provide an edge in the global labour market. In this paper, we draw on data collected from interviews with parents and children in middle-class…

Strategic planning is critical to ensuring that institutions of higher education thoughtfully and systematically position themselves to accomplish their mission, vision, and strategic goals, particularly when these institutions face a myriad of risks that can negatively impact their continued financial viability and compromise their ability to…

Romain Bertrand is a middle school math teacher and Opportunity Culture enthusiast. As the 2012-13 school year wound down, he was already thoroughly looking forward to the next--when he will become a multi-classroom leader at Ranson IB Middle School, taking accountability for the learning results of 700 students. At Ranson, a Project L.I.F.T.…

This article describes the design and evaluation approaches to address the complexity posed by systems change initiatives. The role of evaluations in addressing the following issues is briefly reviewed: moving from strategic planning to implementation, impacts on system-level coordination, anticipated timeline of impact, and individual level…

Explores ways in which educational institutions may undertake market research, using case studies from various educational situations. Recommends market research for long-range planning and marketing activities. (SK)

In planning for the year 2010, Cornell University (New York) found that, although space for library collections must increase, advancing technology would slow the increase required, with most of the collection growth after 2000 managed through wider technology or remote storage. Consolidation of special libraries is also considered. (MSE)

Examines the subtle and not-so-subtle factors underlying private/public partnership formation in university settings and proposes a framework of "institutional readiness" for engaging in such efforts. The experience of the California State University in its innovative technology infrastructure initiative is discussed as an example. (MSE)

The adoption of a more "open" national training market in vocational education and training (VET) in Australia has led to considerable changes in VET organizations and considerable challenges for VET managers. Recent research has established the critical role that 'strategy' plays in leading and managing these organizations and the…

Principles for state planning for postsecondary education are considered, and three hypothetical case studies are presented for discussion purposes. The first and basic principle is the need for a clear and categorical mandate for state planning. A second principle is to develop full knowledge of the authority and responsibilities for…

Although private industry has been decentralizing for the past decade, community colleges have been slow to follow. For those colleges that have decentralized, traditional structured planning methodologies do not apply. The focus of strategic planning efforts at decentralized institutions is on the development of strategic themes to which…

Discusses the managerial skills necessary for community college administrators in a time of collective bargaining, declining enrollments, and scarcity of public funds. Analyses three community college cases that exemplify successful planning processes developed by education leaders to promote staff development. Stresses the importance of…

In this paper we critique grounded theory's ability to fulfil its aim of offering a practical vehicle for prediction, change, and control as stipulated in grounded theory's original formulation by Glaser and Strauss, and later developed by Strauss. We do this through a case study approach, whereby we develop a grounded theory of leisure and…

This paper addresses what characteristics of institutional approaches to change succeed in achieving stated institutional aims within a higher education context. It asserts, through an examination of two case studies, that successful organizational change depends on context-laden feedback-driven processes that result in steady incremental…