Fees at California's public colleges and universities have increased in the past two decades, but are still lower than fees at comparable institutions in other states. Fees for full-time undergraduate students at the University of California (UC) were $8,027 in 2008-09 and fees at California State University (CSU) were $3,849. Fees are likely to…

President Barack Obama's American Graduation Initiative, the pledge of $12 billion for America's community colleges over a 10-year span, delighted Maryland officials because the state's community-college enrollment is growing at more than 4 percent a year while public and personal budgets are shrinking. With 16 community colleges serving the…

The California State University campus at Long Beach graduated 8,720 students last month. Each one got the opportunity to walk the stage, and F. King Alexander, the university's president, shook every hand. California State at Long Beach has made graduating a greater number of its 38,000 students its top priority. The slogan "Graduation…

Maryland's governor, Martin J. O'Malley, didn't get much of his legislative agenda through the General Assembly this year, but he did succeed on one front: preserving enough state aid for the public-university system to stave off a tuition increase for the fourth consecutive year. Like politicians in several states, Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, made…

The University at Buffalo (UB) and Empire State College (ESC) designed a project that demonstrates the viability of shipping materials directly to the patron, the cost-effectiveness of using UPS for delivering and returning materials, the value of expanded library service to ESC patrons, and the practicality of purchasing-on-demand as a service…

One may be surprised to learn that the author's institution, a small state college in Massachusetts, has a significant alumni population in and around Los Angeles. In fact, while they do not have an alumni chapter in Boston, they do have one in Los Angeles. The reason is that one of their most popular majors is communications media. They pump out…

The fundamental asset of a university is its faculty. Without faculty working with students, the university is just a set of buildings. The faculty design and teach the courses, keep the educational program updated, and work with students to help them gain the skills and knowledge they need to prepare for their careers or professional education.…

This study examined the relationship between and among the changes in the level of institutional fundraising and changes in state funding at Maryland public 4-year institutions. As institutions have become more engaged in fundraising, the impact of private giving success on changes in state funding becomes more apparent in the context of increased…

This report compares high school indicators of college readiness for the Baltimore City Schools Class of 2011 with actual readiness as determined by Maryland colleges. Each Maryland college determines its own criteria for entering credit bearing courses or taking developmental courses. As a result, findings are reported separately by college…

This dissertation examines the impact and significance of the New Left on the conservative campus and community of California State College, Fullerton (CSF) during the 1960s and early 1970s. Built to meet the demands of the Baby Boom after World War II, CSF became the latest in a series of California State campus expansions in 1959-1960.…

The major higher education trade associations have addressed the calls for transparency and accountability by creating two public online databases into which colleges are able to voluntarily submit information on costs and outcomes. The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) launched its University and College…

Innovations from the United States have often led the world to new discoveries and solutions to complex problems. However, there are alarming indications that the United States is falling behind other countries in the ability to apply science, technology, engineering, and math to complex problems facing our world. In order for the country to…

Few recent issues in higher education have been as contentious as that of legislation extending in-state college tuition benefits to undocumented students, initiatives now known as in-state resident tuition (ISRT) policies. Building on several strands of literature in political science and higher education studies, we analyze the effects of…

This article presents the author's profile. The author is an enrolled member of the Comanche Tribe and a descendant of the last leader of the Quahada Band. Currently, she attends Comanche Nation College in Lawton, Oklahoma, where she is a junior-level student majoring in both biology and chemistry with a minor in non-romance languages. From…

Virtual universities (VUs) were formed to open up access to higher education for new and existing students, and they continue to grow and thrive. They come in all sizes and organizational and business models, and most differ from their founding institutions. However, VUs face more rigorous requirements for accountability and reporting. Most of…