Five years ago the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) launched a revolution in our education system by insisting that all students should be proficient in reading and math by 2014 and demanding comprehensive reforms to reach this national goal, including strong assessment and accountability systems, a highly qualified teacher in every classroom, more…

The East-West Center (Hawaii) and North-South Center (Florida) for hemisphere-oriented international studies have lost most federal funding and have had to trim staff, cut programs, and begin solicitation of private support. While lawmakers admit the centers do important work, they feel they are unnecessary and the work could be done elsewhere.…

The history of and issues in Oregon's retrenchment in higher education (resulting from voter-imposed taxing restrictions) are chronicled. Changes made at Portland State University are used to illustrate the program review and termination process occurring statewide. The higher education community's response, faculty and staff morale, and…

Roughly 20 years after Black studies and other ethnic studies fields evolved from campus protest, new questions are arising about the role of separate ethnic studies departments in face of the movement toward multiculturalism in the college curriculum. Very real economic realities underlie the academic and social concerns. (MSE)

Examines a specific program termination (in social work) to determine how universities interpret and apply the goals of their strategic plans. Finds that institutional actors hold different perceptions of the strategic plan goals and their relevance to the terminated program. Suggests that colleges and universities need to clarify strategic plan…

Describes how a federal program let a California for-profit institution, the Masters Institute, expand its distance education offerings, but then led to its closure because of findings of financial aid fraud. (EV)

Examines a failed effort at university-community collaboration among three community-based organizations and the University of South Florida. Explores the dynamics of the interaction, analyzing the roles played by the competing goals and conflicting decision-making procedures of each party. Offers guidelines for universities seeking to establish…

This chapter describes the history and demise of the service-learning component of a teacher education program. Beginning in 1968, service learning was a self-directed, community-based program within the student-teaching practicum at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario. Students were responsible for matching their learning needs with placement…

Linda G. Morra of the General Accounting Office testified on possible savings in the Department of Education in order to assist the House of Representatives' Appropriations Committee as they considered budget reductions and rescissions. Morra testified first on the need to reexamine programs previously suggested by the Department of Education for…

Faced with scarce resources and environmental uncertainty in the past decade, colleges and universities have experimented with different modes of academic staffing, most of which are attempts to preserve or create more flexible policies and practices. In spite of tenure systems in operation at 94% of all four year colleges, institutions have at…

Cooperative education programs that operated in 1974-1975 were identified and their status by 1981-1982 was investigated. General characteristics of program growth that might indicate the structural and organizational correlates of longevity and stability were assessed. Attention was directed to two- and four-year colleges that were not federally…

Causes contributing to academic program audit and review becoming a means of resource reallocation in higher education are considered, along with principles relevant to its management, and major issues surrounding its development and implementation. The current interest in the audit and review of established academic programs is linked to…

Diplomacy and political sophistication are as important as sound data and thorough review in the faculty layoff process. Distinguishing characteristics of institutions and departments affected by retrenchment and reasons for retrenchment are discussed, along with institutional research policies needed regarding release of data. (Author/LB)

Escalating costs are causing universities to postpone faculty hiring, consolidating offices into one, and entire academic departments are being phased out. The extent of the financial problems facing major research institutions is indicated in an internal survey prepared by the Association of American Universities. (MLW)

An outdoor educator whose teaching position and field center were eliminated reflects on the importance of publicizing the value of outdoor education in developing ecological understanding and promoting student connection with the natural world, both of which are essential to learning to live a sustainable lifestyle. (LP)