This article features Christopher Kent, a futurist who uses his skills to study the future. Kent examines the present for clues to changes that the future may bring. His training in history serves him well. Futurists specialize in recognizing upcoming uncertainty and attempting to manage it. They realize that unknown--and unknowable--changes will…

In November 1996, the voters of Montgomery County (Maryland) approved by referendum an amendment to the County Charter that changed the County Council's review and approval cycle of the six-year Capital Improvements Program (CIP) from an annual to biennial cycle. The referendum specified that in odd-numbered fiscal years (on years) the County…

In this article, the authors explain a method that helps policymakers and educators to identify the forces and trends affecting education today and to project how they might conceivably play out in the future. They suggest that by asking "What if?" in a disciplined way, it might be better to imagine the possibilities of tomorrow in order to take…

Context: Since the passage of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, rural hospitals have struggled with the need to strategically adapt to an abundance of changing reimbursement and regulatory programs, as well as to respond to the needs of an increasingly frail elder population in need of postacute and long-term care (LTC). Purpose: This article has 2…

The author looked at trend data presented at the 1985 National Outdoor Recreation Trends Symposium and synthesized the results to offer insights into the future of outdoor recreation. Discussed are social, activity, private sector recreational, economic, tourism, and policy trends. (MT)

Presents an overview of a process that has been used at the University of Georgia to identify educational trends through a systematic analysis of selected professional journals. Describes the 10 steps in the process. (FL)

The use of the term "career development" as descriptive of both the factors and processes influencing individual career behavior and as synonymous with intervention in career behavior is relatively recent. Article reviews the legacy of the 20th century and considers selected theoretical and practical issues likely to be prominent in the…

Describes the Florida Division of Vocational Education planning team that has been formed to plan for the future of vocational education in Florida. Reviews trends that will affect vocational education in the coming years. (LRA)

The authors analyzed three techniques employed in technological forecasting: (1) brainstorming, (2) extrapolation, and (3) scenario writing. They argue that these techniques have value to practitioners, particularly managers, who are often affected by technological change. (CH)

In a world progressing with dizzying acceleration into the Information Age, the slow, measured approach of the traditional university can place administrator, faculty member, and student alike at a disadvantage. To move into this brave new world, the academic animal needs tools. "Beyond 2020: Envisioning the Future of Universities in America" is…

An environmental scanning system is structured to identify and evaluate trends, events, and emerging issues. QUEST represents the quick environmental scanning technique, and an ED QUEST process enables an educational organization to clarify its future and define its options. This paper describes how an educational organization can establish an…

Multiple scenario analysis addresses the dilemma of strategic planners who must have some understanding of the future while recognizing the inadequacy of predicting it. By adopting this approach, planners can consider a wide range of possible developments. (MLW)

Explores the challenges facing counseling centers, particularly as centers encounter a changing and unstable social and financial environment and consider undertaking a greater or lesser degree and variety of tasks. Suggests a strategic agenda for consideration in the 1990s. (Author/ABL)

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 article describes how planning was used to transform the University of Twente (The Netherlands) from a regional to an entrepreneurial national institution. Noted are contexts of Dutch higher education and history, developments since 1964, strategic development for the 1980s, planning since 1980, a strategic plan for the 1990s, and the present…