In the present study, the authors investigated age differences in children's understanding (a) that a person's behavior may contribute to the formation of a shared opinion within the peer group and (b) that origins of a reputation can be direct or indirect. The authors read stories in which a target character engaged in either prosocial or…

In this article, the author explores the question: How can individuals understand the impacts of clergy sexual abuse upon K-12 teachers' effectiveness with all children? Given the parallels between the work of teachers and religious authority figures, the damage to one authority figure's credibility, says the author, is likely to impact another's…

This article introduces cluster analysis and reference set analysis as tools for understanding structure, identity, and aspiration in complex organizational fields. Cluster analysis is used to identify the structure of the organizational field in American four-year colleges and universities. The article shows that presidential choices of reference…

This article describes Bob Montgomery's Famous Kindergarten First Graders! project. The aim of the project is to assist his students in learning about each other, to introduce them to digital photography using iPhoto (they participate in a group lesson in editing as well), and to introduce them to moviemaking using iMovie software. The project…

An analysis of the total compensation of presidents and the five highest-paid employees at 190 private colleges and universities in 1993 looked at the additional variables of institutional expenditure level, institution type, reputation, and student Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores. Results indicated that institutional expenditures,…

The "Flexner Report" of 1910, which described 155 U.S. and Canadian medical schools, is discussed, along with its influence on later studies of academic quality. Scholars almost universally agree that the Flexner Report dramatically changed the nature of medical education in the United States, although they disagree about how this…

In this day of increased competition for students, educators need to know what makes their institution exceptional or how it is perceived as providing something of value that other institutions in the local area do not. Without this information, community colleges will find it difficult to thrive and adapt in the future. Efforts to determine the…

The importance of college image on student enrollment choices is discussed and a model is described which, using various student background variables as independent variables and college choice as the dependent variable, tries to assess the factors which determine college choice. (SE)

Perceptions of Yale and sixteen of its major competitors were obtained from high school students offered admission to Yale and from undergraduate students attending Yale. Ratings of similarity between colleges were obtained in one study, and the semantic differential technique was used in a second study to corroborate the findings. (SW)

As the ultimate symbol of excellence, the Nobel Prize has had a tremendous effect on scholars, institutions, and national pride. Topics discussed include: recruitment and fund raising, salaries and other perks, "raids" from other institutions, students seeking out winners, publication declines, etc. (MLW)

President Richard M. Cyert of Carnegie Mellon University set establishing national visibility as a university-wide goal six years ago. The public relations office developed a hard-driving program centered on national media coverage. This program is described. (MLW)

Defends Blume's works by presenting internal evidence displaying the honesty and lack of exaggeration that make her books popular with adolescents and unpopular with critics. (CRH)

This paper presents two ways that schools can enhance their reputation: the annual back-to-school night and recognition programs for alumni. For back-to-school night, guests should be welcomed with enthusiasm and parents should be informed of the school's achievements. Since many staff members have never been coached on parent-friendly behavior,…

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation combined its concern that few top flight scholars are choosing the humanities for careers and its awareness of the current oversupply of humanities faculty to create a $24 million fellowship program to direct talented graduate students into English and comparative literature, American studies, history, classics,…

A narrow view of the faculty member's responsibility in writing recommendations for students has been adopted in recent years. The teacher has a broad responsibility that extends beyond assessing strictly academic performance to considering behavior and moral values. (MSE)