The forty-something presidents are arriving, and not just at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. New chiefs at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dartmouth College, Virginia Commonwealth University, and West Virginia University can't get their AARP cards yet. More are on the way. Fully 90 percent of presidents are at least 50 years old,…

In this article, the authors discuss how the historians' job market is perennially rocky. The history profession had its "golden age" in the 1950s and early 1960s when a generation born in the demographic trench of the Depression entered the market just as the first of the baby boomers began to swell college enrollments. But that moment was…

Financial stewardship by college governing boards too often stops at balancing the budget. That was the message two finance experts presented last week during the annual meeting of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. Furthermore, the yearly budget exercise can give trustees a misperception of their institutions'…

The need to shift the education-reform movement in many Southern states away from one-time legislative victories and toward long-term, comprehensive plans to meet specific goals is discussed. A meeting of the Southern Regional Educational Board is reported. (MLW)

Discusses the trend to build and/or expand dormitory facilities at community colleges as part of their effort to recruit students, especially international students, athletes, and nonlocal students. Critics suggest that the colleges will lose money on new dormitories. Student reaction has been positive. (DB)

The interview with Derek Bok addresses his reasons for stepping down from the Harvard presidency; cost-cutting efforts at Harvard; "selective excellence" as a planning principle; current needs of Harvard; corruption of higher education by corporate ties; the changing college presidency; and the role of ethical considerations in decision…

States are moving away from plans allowing parents to pay for their children's education at a fixed rate years in advance, instead looking at plans that simply help parents save money. Of the nine guaranteed-tuition programs, only three are in operation, and some are pressing for a national program. (MSE)

Examines the involvement of consultants from the nonprofit National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS) in the long-term planning of public college systems, including those of West Virginia, Louisiana, Nebraska, Texas, and Kentucky. Traces the development of NCHEMS from its establishment in 1969 as a federally supported…

Discusses financial pressures on university athletics departments using the University of Wisconsin (Madison) as an example. A recent state audit noted the UW athletic department's sizable debt, and an internal five-year plan predicts a substantial budgetary increase due to such factors as construction projects. More aggressive fund raising and…

A variety of alternatives to traditional means of financing a college education are being developed by states and institutions in response to rising tuitions. The ideas, including novel payment and loan plans and tuition futures, are often controversial because of the risks they entail. (MSE)

Reports on current efforts in many states to develop new long-range plans for their higher education systems. Finds that at least two dozen states are using strategic or "master" plans in an effort to deal with rapid technological and economic change. Specific efforts in West Virginia, California, Virginia, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, and…

A panel of educators, business leaders, and government officials convened by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), recommends massive, state-by-state educational change by increasing the proportion of American college graduates, giving public institutions major responsibility for teacher education, and encouraging…

More than a year before the 1988 fiscal year begins, budget analysts have completed the difficult and complex process of interpreting administration policy, created detailed proposals for education spending for that year, and submitted the proposals to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review. (MSE)

Many small private colleges are gaining in enrollments because of aggressive marketing tactics, more long-term planning, and innovative educational programs designed to appeal to nontraditional students. (MSE)

Reports on a 2-day meeting of over 125 college presidents, administrators, and professors at liberal arts colleges who examined ways to collaborate in providing courses via the Internet. Emphasis is on a 13-college collaboration in the classics and Project 2001, a collaboration of 762 liberal-arts colleges working to use technology to improve…