Smaller, private, independent institutions of higher education across the United States are facing challenging times. This white paper by Edwin H. Welch, president of the University of Charleston, shares lessons gleaned from the institution's innovative efforts over almost 30 years. Welch's hope is that the experiences at the University of…

Critical race courses challenge today's college students to cognitively grapple with issues of justice and the good society. In some instances, these challenges lead to positive, relational growth-fostering attitudes and behaviors. Transformative learning educator Jack Mezirow's approach to facilitating cognitive shifts appears especially…

Arguably, the dilemma for many small college libraries is delivering face-to-face library instruction to satellite students without having the resources and/or staff to do so. In order to channel energies to where they are needed most, this institution conducted a survey of its satellite students to determine what their library instruction…

Only 10% of nontraditional students (NTS) persist to graduation (Headden, 2009; PHEAA, 2015), resulting in 38 million dropping out before completing a degree (Zaiss, 2012). Their unique characteristics place them at greater risk of attrition. Attrition risk increases as they move from minimally to highly nontraditional (NT; Horn, 1996; Levin,…

Written communication skills are one of the most assessed criteria in higher education contexts, especially in humanities disciplines, including teacher education. There is a need to research and develop an assessment grading tool (i.e. criteria sheet or rubric) that would assist students in pre-service teacher education programs to better…

Disciplinary identity, or connection to a particular academic discipline, is constructed through a developmental process across a scholar's academic life course. Using unique data from an online survey of students at four different types of colleges and universities, this study investigates the extent to which disciplinary identity among…

The 2014 Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) report, "Strengthening the STEM Pipeline: The Contributions of Small and Mid-Sized Independent Colleges," demonstrated the critical role this sector of higher education institutions plays in preparing its students for success in obtaining undergraduate and graduate degrees in science,…

Music educator preparation curricula have been studied by several researchers (Killian, Dye & Wayman, 2013; Raiber & Teachout, 2014; Thornton, Murphy & Hamilton, 2004). Preservice educators complete a unique curriculum to meet the requirements of their institution based on the guidelines for teacher certification set by the state…

This chapter demonstrates the complexity of pedagogical and curricular change as it unfolds through several overlapping phases of increasingly coordinated reflection and action around STEM initiatives at Pomona College. It argues for a networked model of research and practice, drawing on theory and lessons from improvement science and highlighting…

Completion of a baccalaureate degree is positively associated with economic independence and upward mobility in an increasingly competitive world. Student success, through persistence to graduation, is a central goal for institutions of higher education, but only a fraction of students who begin college will graduate with a degree. Despite decades…

Undergraduate biology programs in smaller liberal arts colleges are increasingly becoming focused on health science fields. This narrowing of focus potentially decreases opportunities for these students to explore other sub-fields of biology. This perspectives article highlights how one small university in Connecticut decided to institute a…

Data from the National Science Foundation (2014) indicate that at least one PhD in economics was awarded to a Swarthmore College graduate in every year since 1966. The authors' purpose in this article is to consider factors that may have contributed to the high number of PhDs in economics awarded to Swarthmore College graduates. While there is…

Each year, institutions eagerly await reports from "Shanghai Jiao Tong University," "Times Higher," "QS," and other organisations that create and publish international rankings of university performance. The metrics included in league tables and rankings--research income, research staff, number of doctoral candidates,…

This book analyses the role of universities as critical actors in the socio-economic development of peripheral regions in Norway and the Czech Republic. Examining the ambiguities of the traditional mission of a university in comparison to contemporary demands, the editors and contributors move past single-case analyses to adopt an integrated…

This paper describes the academic consultation services offered to students with disabilities (SWD) at a small university. Each SWD is entitled to meet regularly with an academic consultant. The consultants are trained in offering a variety of services, including organization/time management, note-taking/reading comprehension strategies, goal…