The "raison d'etre" for traditional schools of education has radically shifted in recent years. Research demonstrates that schools have been remarkably unsuccessful at reducing the unacceptable achievement gap between black and Latino students, on the one hand, and white students, on the other, and some have laid the blame at the feet of…

Describes the process of change at Syracuse University (New York) focusing on the role of core values, institutional mission, and a vision for the future in the change process at a time of declining enrollment and economic difficulties. Results of the process are noted, and suggestions are made for adapting the approach for public colleges and…

This article argues that metropolitan universities are well suited to respond to workforce development and maintenance needs, and ways in which institutions can gather the information needed to target their response are examined. A Northern Illinois University study is offered as an example of such an effort. The role of metropolitan universities…

In this article the author discusses the communicative encounters--oral and written--between members of two discourse communities--human resources (HR) and faculty--housed within an urban university in the Northeast. The author focuses on one individual's attempts to articulate and impose a component of her community's implicit rules for behavior…

Metropolitan State University (Minnesota), intended to serve largely mature community college transfer students in the inner city, gives students responsibility for planning their own individualized course of studies, with a competence-based focus. Community-based faculty, classrooms, and library resources are essential elements. (Author/MSE)

The role of advanced programs in urban universities and the relationship between large public urban universities and comprehensive state universities in less-populated areas are addressed. An overview of the issues, case studies in three states, a study comparing students in two doctoral programs, and information on the characteristics of large…

The political dynamics surrounding the adoption of an open admissions policy at the City University of New York (CUNY) are discussed. Analysis of the case of CUNY also provides a basis for considering the politics of structural change in American higher education. It is suggested that when Chancellor Albert Bowker took office in 1963, he followed…