Without significant changes in educational programs, teaching-learning strategies and living-learning environments the so-called "invisible colleges" may in fact disappear because they have been unable to meet the needs of their constituencies. These small, private colleges with limited resources must become interdependent with their environments.…

Most small colleges face difficult decisions during the 1980s regarding their institutional identity and educational goals. Forces acting upon college administrators today tend to favor comprehensiveness at the expense of distinctiveness. Society will be served better by an array of distinctive small colleges, each having a character of its own.…

Endangered small, private colleges can take steps toward survival, including mission clarification, expanding services to existing and potential clienteles, introducing management by objectives, and developing public relations and fund raising. Long-range options include avoiding the postsecondary mainstream and striving for efficiency of…

Institutional advancement is defined as the craft of securing understanding and support from internal and external constituencies for all the programs and activities of the college, and selling is seen as the means for achieving institutional advancement goals. The making of friends who become donors is discussed. (MLW)

Practical steps for designing and implementing a planning process for small colleges are described, including designing for desired changes and measuring the changes accomplished. Focus is on the achievement of desired change rather than acceptance of uncontrolled change. (This article was excerpted from a handbook by Miller and Louis J. Vaccaro.)…

The decision on the most appropriate size for liberal arts colleges should not be made on economic grounds. Analysis of literature shows that economic benefits through economies of scale are too debatable to play an important role. Fixed costs may be offset by less institutional complexity in small colleges. (Author/MSE)

College administrators in small and specialized colleges with a narrower margin for financial planning need a management process that continually renews the institution's sense of direction while ensuring that plans are matched to available resources. (MSE)

Characteristics of small college administration as it applies to the future are described. Consideration is given to the process for anticipating change in the circumstances surrounding colleges, identifying opportunities, and planning to take advantage of positive changes in the environment (i.e., future focused planning). The use of the Planning…

Bradford College's experience with curriculum and administrative development in a period of extreme adversity is an example of how a new concept of mission can invigorate an institution while a survival mentality can weaken it. (MSE)

The development of a Planning, Management, and Evaluation (PME) system at Voorhees College, is described. The project at the small, liberal arts college was supported by an Advanced Institutional Development Program (AIDP) grant. Primary objectives were to decrease the responsibility of the college's chief officer and to upgrade the academic…

Based on a research study that assessed the process of institutional advancement at selected small, independent colleges, this monograph provides data designed to help small college presidents, trustees, and advancement personnel focus on the advancement of their institution rather than its termination. Chapter One discusses the concept of…

A model for long range planning is discussed including: identification of institutional strengths, establishing mission and goals, resources needed, resources available, resource allocations, periodic evaluation, and revising plan based on evaluation. Presidential leadership and faculty involvement are necessary for completing the task. (MLW)

A committee approach to small-college short-range planning is described that focuses on admissions, financial aid, academic programs, and budget and using task forces, representatives of the board, administration, and faculty, and strict adherence to a schedule of deadlines. (MSE)

As part of a study of selected developing colleges and universities funded in the Advanced Program of Title III of the Higher Education Act, a case study of Doane College is reported. Doane is a small liberal arts college that has experienced changes in demography and in mission. Doane's state-of-development is reviewed. Its historical development…

Based on extensive research, this book questions the benefits assumed to accrue from enlarging American colleges. The application of the industrial economies-of-scale model to academic institutions is challenged, since the purpose of academic institutions is not production but learning. Evidence is cited of hidden "diseconomies" of scale on large…