An interdisciplinary liberal arts program can prompt innovative ideas and self-discovery when fired in a kiln of social and economic justice fueled by high-impact practices. Developing learning communities, internships, group projects, local-to-global learning, community-based service learning, and capstone projects can enhance education and…

What are the enduring, value-added features of small, private liberal arts colleges? Certain distinctions come to mind: broad exposure to the disciplines, focused study in the majors, and close campus interactions--all enhanced by the residential experience. However, what is (and has historically been) the value of small, private residential…

The liberal arts college's role has always been education for intellectual excellence and technical competence, grounded in a sensitivity for the dimension of depth in human experience. As American culture becomes more urban and more secular, the liberal arts colleges must maintain their essential task of asking ultimate questions. (Author/MLW)

Three distinct eras of higher education are seen as characterizing the 200-year history of Williams College (Massachusetts): first as a Christian college, then as a gentleman's school, and, finally, as a consumer-oriented institution as part of a general trend toward consumerism after World War II resulting from social change and decline in the…

A case study of the campus-wide governance system at Carleton College is presented. Problems addressed in the last eight years include faculty evaluation, tenure, administrative problems, curriculum development, minority needs, career awareness, and educational finance. The governance process is analyzed and a recommended model is described. (JMD)

Aspects of the small liberal arts college's environment that contribute to the intellectual and personal development of faculty as well as students include accessibility, visibility, flexibility, the institution's desire for interdisciplinary inquiry, and a reward system for scholarship. (MSE)

The perception that a college has an excellent academic program is seen as a judgment about the whole college, not just about a few departments. To maintain this judgment, the administrator of a small college must exercise balance in allocation of resources to departments and academic support areas. (Author/MLW)

Swarthmore College's Reading for Honors program prepares its participants for communicating their expertise and ideas with the outside world. Students in the program are subject to the scrutiny of examiners from outside the institution who determine the degree of honors bestowed at commencement. (Author/MSE)

A study of 43 liberal arts colleges' library budgets for the first half of the 1970s is described. The combined effects of inflation and financial crunch have led to a materials v staff struggle which could result in an improper balance between these two items. (Author/MLW)

A former faculty member at Eisenhower College, an experimental college that closed after only a few years' operation, gives an anecdotal account of some of the problems the college faced and how the administration handled them. (MSE)

The variety of efforts made by several hundred small liberal arts colleges in the areas of classroom instruction, individual student supervision, academic advising, and orientation programs to foster a context in which student-faculty interaction becomes more likely is examined. (MSE)

Liberal arts colleges have abandoned their goal of education for the university-college model of education-for-a-job. The need for a new model is discussed. Colleges need to establish a central theme: "a curricular career of learning how to learn and accepting the responsibilities of leadership." (Author/MLW)

The approaches taken by Alverno College, Clayton State College, DePaul University, James Madison University, Northeast Missouri State University, and Rhode Island College in using the results of student assessment productively are described. (MSE)

A study tested the hypothesis: The greater the amount of philanthropic income per dollar of tuition, the smaller the fraction of bachelor's degrees in occupational fields. Findings support the contention that a college's tuition dependence is associated with its tendency to adjust its curriculum to match student consumer preferences. (MLW)