A taxonomy of developmental planning considerations and corresponding areas in which institutional researchers and developmental professionals can collaborate to assess and improve fund-raising activities is presented. (MSE)

Each institution has an existing planning style, and new approaches to academic planning must take into account institutionalized planning practices. Four planning styles are examined: needs assessment, program data, retrenchment and reallocation, and economic incentives. (Author/MLW)

Five criteria for judging college or university performance indicators (PIs) used to guide strategic decision making are outlined. The criteria address: purpose; alignment of PIs throughout the organization or system; alignment of PIs across inputs, processes, and outcomes; capacity to accommodate a variety of evaluation methods; and utility in…

The contemporary context and some recent trends affecting college program reviews or evaluations, current options in purposes and practices, and impacts on programs and institutions are discussed. It is recommended that the process be viewed as a contribution to the general knowledge base for campus constituencies rather than as "right answers"…

The roles of incentives in academic decision making are examined, potential uses of incentives in academic decision making are suggested, and research projects that promise to increase the understanding of desirable uses of incentives in academic planning are proposed. (Author/MLW)

Successful outcomes assessment programs have many common characteristics. Institutional researchers should examine these signs of success and use them as guides for developing their own campus programs. (Author/MSE)

Needs assessment is seen as a viable tool to assist administrators and faculty members concerned about meeting client and community needs for programs. The identification and assessment of instructional program needs is discussed. A definition of need is provided. (Author/MLW)

Market analysis can provide a mechanism for making needs assessment functional and for focusing program development on constituencies in the community that need to be served. The main goals of market analysis are to generate usable information, document needs, assign priorities, locate resources, and respond to identified needs in a systematic…

A University of Tulsa project to improve campus leadership development focused on encouraging communication among nonacademic staff. From this experience came valuable proposals for institutional change, but the process itself was even more significant, empowering employees to accept a voice in campus governance. Some frustration has also…

The role of institutional research in the creation and operation of an information center is discussed, along with the ways in which the spread of information centers within higher education is likely to influence the future development of institutional research. Forces leading to the emergence of information centers are advances in computer…

There are several signs that a college can use to determine if a program needs evaluation from a consumer point of view. Answers to the following questions can be very revealing: How many students start the program per year? How many graduate per year? What do they do when they graduate? How much money do they make? How long do they remain in the…

Suggests steps in planning and managing student tracking systems: build support, determine the system's purpose, inventory available student data, identify information gaps, consider a small prototype, make tracking ongoing, and use the system. Reviews potential problems during implementation. Cites further sources of information. (DMM)

The conditions facing postsecondary education during the 1980s, it is suggested, call for institutional planning styles that are comprehensive, systematic, public, regular, and expansive. The formal democratic style is described as a comprehensive planning process that requires all departments to submit their plans to the college. (Author/MLW)

In an effort to integrate existing data into decision-making processes, the School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) began development of a comprehensive set of databases to be used in planning and administration. University strategic planning had begun in 1975 and continued with new impetus and revisions in 1984 and…

Colleges and their surrounding communities have a supplier/consumer relationship--in exchange for the use of tax-exempt land and tax-supported services, the college acts as a cultural and educational center that provides the community with social and economic benefits. However, in times of a declining economy, this symbiotic relationship is not…