One campus sustainability trend emerging in early 2011 is that more institutions are considering larger solar installations. To cite a few major examples from the past few weeks, the University of Maryland at College Park recently announced its plans to install more than 2,600 solar panels on buildings across campus, and Princeton has announced plans to […]
This article was first published in 2011. However, many of the strategies and perspectives shared below apply today. Numerous studies have demonstrated the impact that study abroad and other forms of experiential learning (internships, service learning, etc.) have on the persistence and academic performance of undergraduates in general and of minority students in particular; yet increasing […]
Many college and university advancement shops are facing increased constraints on their resources (not only budgetary resources, but staff and time) while also facing increased demand from stakeholders across the institution, who often clamor for central advancement resources, then object when they don’t receive them or receive fewer than they deem necessary for their efforts. The resulting disappointment […]
Renewed national and public pressure on college completion rates is fueling a continuing surge of interest in “early warning” intervention programs for college students deemed at risk of withdrawal or failing. The earlier an academically at-risk student is identified, the better the prognosis for their success in college. Early alert systems, implemented within the first […]
It’s critical that development officers at colleges and universities identify the best opportunities for harnessing alumni volunteerism. A December 2009 study by the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund and VolunteerMatch offers some compelling data to demonstrate the importance of volunteerism to fundraising: The average amount given by volunteers is more than 10 times that given by […]
The recent economic crisis has driven a surge of interest in program prioritization, as state legislators and governing boards insist that colleges set priorities for future investment and as institutional leaders find that they can no longer afford to “be all things to all people.” Facing severe financial shortfalls and external demands for accountability, many […]
A growing number of colleges and universities have launched pilot projects to test how the iPad might be used to produce a positive impact on student learning and engagement. In this article, we visit Pepperdine University to find out what lessons could be gleaned from Pepperdine’s own iPad pilot project. We interviewed Dana Hoover, assistant […]
Beginning in 2012, the federal government will use three-year student loan default rates (which are rising quickly) to help decide which higher ed institutions qualify for federal student aid programs. While this will have the largest impact on for-profit colleges (whose students, according to a US Department of Education report, are more likely to default […]
A small but growing number of public institutions are adding living-learning residence programs that include the integration of faculty into the residential facility. Recent news has highlighted faculty-in-residence programs at the University of Colorado and the University of South Carolina. What’s clear from the success of programs at USC and other institutions is that having faculty […]
The weeks preceding the holiday see quite a bit of media attention to practices student affairs professionals have adopted to help students manage the stress and study-load of exams week (for example, this piece in the Boston Globe). A number of colleges are trying “emergency stress relief” techniques such as bringing a masseuse or late-night […]
