Given the stakes and the current economic climate, U.S. higher education officials across the country are stepping up their advocacy efforts, making their voices louder and more persistent than ever. They are vying for the attention of states struggling with increased demands for limited revenues, most choosing to divert dollars from higher…

Faced with large and continued cuts in state funding, U.S. public postsecondary institutions are looking for new ways to both communicate their needs and garner support. They are calling on longtime supporters, enlisting new allies, developing strategic alliances, and crafting new messages and campaigns--all to underscore the importance of higher…

Parents present something of a conundrum to higher education administrators. They know that parents play a very important role in student success, especially during the first year, but institutions are also committed to ensuring that students successfully transition from childhood to adulthood. While they want to encourage parent involvement in…

As president of Miami University of Ohio from 1996 until 2006, James C. Garland redefined the public institution as a "semi-private" university by implementing the same tuition for both in-state and out-of-state students. Students from Ohio with need received large scholarships--but those who could afford to pay more did so. The reform,…