With tax revenues beginning to rebound in most states and endowments on the rebound at many private and public institutions, colleges and universities are growing more hopeful about their financial outlook and instituting new strategies to take advantage of the opportunities. Yet as the economic recovery has slowed in the past few months, questions remain about the lingering effects of the recession and whether colleges need to be held to a more stringent level of accountability. On the whole, college finances have recovered slightly after several years of budget cuts, layoffs, and furloughs. As money flows toward colleges once again, so do demands that they prove they are providing value, and well-trained graduates. In this uncertain climate, legislators and accreditors are focusing more and more on completion rates as a quantitative measure of an institution's success. College retention and graduation have been central to President Obama's education policy, and states are increasingly focusing on these two issues by directly linking state appropriations to completion rates. Despite the challenges, the recent success of fund-raising programs and the slow but steady growth in the economy has allowed states and universities to develop new, innovative ways to manage their money and better serve their students. Colleges and universities are also trying to develop better measures to judge how they distribute aid.