Based on extensive research, this book questions the benefits assumed to accrue from enlarging American colleges. The application of the industrial economies-of-scale model to academic institutions is challenged, since the purpose of academic institutions is not production but learning. Evidence is cited of hidden "diseconomies" of scale on large campuses and it is suggested that in higher education, small is not only beautiful but essential to effective learning. It is shown how large institutions can subdivide into more manageable learning units and thus regain a more human scale despite their size. It is further demonstrated how small colleges can increase the diversity of their educational opportunities without expanding their enrollments. Alternative colleges for atypical students are suggested, such as community-based colleges that attract minority or high risk students. An "agenda for action" is proposed by which educators might discover the balance between size and function that is essential for effectiveness. It is concluded that the real problems facing today's administrator and faculty member are not generated by a threat of external influences over the teaching and learning process, but by a lack of internal control of and influence over that process. A bibliography is included. (LBH)