Although initially utilized in business and industrial environments, quality management systems can be adapted into higher education to assess and improve an institution's standards. These strategies are now playing a vital role in educational areas such as teaching, learning, and institutional-level practices. However, quality management tools…

The purpose of this paper is to compare the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) self-assessment model in higher education institutions (HEIs) in Spain and in Jordan. Case study methodology on eight services provided by a public university in Spain and seven services provided by one public university and one private university in…

Inverness Research is an independent national educational research group based in California. Its mission is to help projects assess the quality and efficacy of their efforts, and to help funders better understand the design of their initiatives and the value of their investments. Inverness Research has served by contract with CSTP (Center for…

This is the first report from an ongoing study of four urban school districts (New York, New Orleans, Chicago, and the District of Columbia) that are experimenting with new school designs and new ways of holding schools accountable for performance. This report introduces the idea of a "portfolio school district," and shows how some leading school…

Purpose: To analyse the implicit relationships among enabler agents of the European excellence model to serve as a framework for the management and improvement of the quality in higher education institutions. Design/methodology/approach: The hypotheses set out are based on the structure and meaning of the EFQM model and a review of the TQM…

Responses from 33 state education departments to a survey sent to all 50 state education departments about Total Quality Management (TQM) revealed that 22 departments were not currently considering TQM, 11 were considering it, but only 8 submitted designs. Advises school boards of steps to take to bring TQM to their schools. (MLF)

This article urges leaders at institutions of higher education to analyze the decision to pursue a Total Quality Management improvement strategy in the same way as any other strategy--as a return on investment. Evidence of costs and benefits of TQM from industry and campus is summarized, and barriers to a "return on quality investment" mindset are…

A 20-item quiz to help school boards understand Total Quality Management (TQM) and whether they agree philosophically with TQM's tenets such as quality, continuous improvement, and employee empowerment. (MLF)

Presents a typology of quality-assurance systems for higher education and evaluates the alternatives. Argues that total quality management strategies are best suited to higher education's purpose because the model is internal to the delivery of the service, continuous, and process-oriented, but notes, however, that there are deep, often…

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a way of doing business that involves every employee, both labor and management, in an effort to improve quality and productivity. The quality management concept consists of common principles: (1) customer focus; (2) process focus; (3) failure prevention; (4) mobilization of work force; (5) decision making based…

This report of the Panel on Quality Improvement in Student Financial Aid Programs examines the quality control of federal student financial aid programs covered by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and offers recommendations calling for sweeping revisions of the present system. The report explores: (1) the quality control practices…

This South Dakota project assisted the Governor's Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities in setting long range preservice and inservice professional development priorities and identifying future planning needs of the Council. The project provided a prioritization of training needs in the area of developmental disabilities as perceived by…

Total Quality Management is a comprehensive system for developing organizationwide participation in planning for and implementing continuous improvement in critical processes. In colleges, trustees can be central to the success of the method through their commitment and the development of supportive policy and procedures. (MSE)

Most administrators agree that school improvement and change are needed. Disagreement among administrators arises over how the improvements should be made. Total Quality Management (TQM) is a powerful tool in bringing about change and should be considered as an effective alternative in improvement efforts. The TQM approach is designed to address…

This monograph describes how team- and process-oriented change techniques such as Total Quality Management (TQM) and Business Process Reengineering (BPR), were adapted to an academic environment to effect a comprehensive change program at the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC). The $3 million program, begun in 1993, produced radical…