ERIC Number: EJ1436535
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Sep
Pages: 35
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0361-0365
EISSN: EISSN-1573-188X
A Proposed Typology of Regional Public Universities
Cecilia M. Orphan; Mac Wetherbee; Becket C. Duncan
Research in Higher Education, v65 n6 p1208-1242 2024
Regional Public Universities (RPUs) advance public good missions to foster postsecondary access, student-centeredness, and regional wellbeing. Despite the important contributions that RPUs make to their regions and students, scholars and the media often view the sector as amorphous and undistinguished, or they define RPUs by what they are not (e.g., elite, selective, community colleges, etc.). This sequential mixed methods research study grounded in organizational ecology theory and involving content analysis and cluster analysis proposes a typology of RPUs. Specifically, five RPU types are proposed: accessible, midsized master's-degree granting RPUs; regionally focused Historically Black Colleges and Universities; rural-serving and CUNY RPUs; large, urban regional-serving RPUs; and Puerto Rican Hispanic-serving RPUs. This study significantly advances conceptual understanding about RPUs by disrupting deficit-based understandings about the sector being shapeless and amorphous by showing that the sector contains distinct institutional types that represent unique approaches to fulfilling the RPU public good mission. This typology is also among the first to document the institutional diversity of RPUs.
Descriptors: Public Colleges, Classification, Institutional Characteristics, Geographic Regions, Masters Degrees, Black Colleges, Rural Schools, Urban Universities, Minority Serving Institutions, Hispanic American Students, Puerto Ricans
Springer. Available from: Springer Nature. One New York Plaza, Suite 4600, New York, NY 10004. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-460-1700; e-mail: customerservice@springernature.com; Web site: https://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2123/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A