Serving on the board of any nonprofit organization has taken on added significance in recent years. There is greater accountability for trustees and for the overall mission and effectiveness of the organizations that they have the ultimate fiduciary responsibility to maintain. The changes have challenged not only the personal commitment that board…

This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of eight full-time community college faculty members who taught during the economic crisis of 2008. The study was guided by the central research question, "How do community college faculty members describe their lived experiences regarding the recent economic crisis of 2008 and its impact…

Many people view the coming of January 1 each year as an opportunity for a new beginning. The conditions that are facing school and university administrators and educators make it difficult to approach the coming year with optimism. The effects of the recession that crippled state and local budgets have yet to ease, and schools and universities…

As other universities across the country struggle with their financial challenges, continuing education units can serve the same pioneering role in the development of new financial and budget systems. Confronted by serious financial shortfalls during the last three decades, university administrators started to focus on new budget and revenue…

The great majority of institutions, public and private, are looking toward 2009-10 and beyond, in anticipation of the deepest budget cuts in more than a generation--and certainly deeper than at any time in the memory of most current campus leaders. In the current recession, even financially well-positioned independents with substantial numbers of…

Every reader of this volume will determine which information is most relevant to his or her home campus. Like their readers, the authors, as editors of the book, have identified prominent overarching themes and have organized this chapter around three of them. Accordingly, the authors highlight the three macrolevel approaches--identifying and…

The focus of the study was to examine the impact of the recession on (1) community college funding, (2) community college student support services, and (3) on student enrollment. This study relied on data from document analysis and interview of community college personnel and students. The current crisis has resulted in a steep budget reduction to…

University presses are more likely to give voice to stories that might not otherwise be told, such as those involving minority perspectives. But opportunities are shrinking. As extensions of their parent schools, academic presses rarely reap profits, experts say. Many rely on school subsidies to survive. Factor in substantial budget cuts to…

As Congress began debate last week over the size and scope of more than $120 billion in proposed emergency education aid, state leaders were anxiously awaiting the details so they could make specific plans to spend the economic-stimulus money. Governors, state legislators, and state schools chiefs have yet to learn what rules Congress will attach…

Describes how the failure of state lawmakers to pass a budget by the start of the fiscal year forced the partial shutdown of Tennessee's public colleges. (EV)

Every college and university experiences some form of financial hardship at one time or another. The financial problems plaguing local and state governments in recent years have been sufficient by themselves to create serious problems for institutions across the country. At the very least, an institution's financial difficulties can lead to the…

This report attempted to measure the impact of 2 years of budget cuts on the University of California and the California State University systems. The research involved review of a variety of budget documents, analysis of planning done to cope with budget cuts, and interviews with local campus and systemwide officials and knowledgeable sources in…

This paper examines the impact on higher education of funding shortfalls that are due to significant reductions of college budgets by state legislatures and that result in trimming of services and laying off of employees. First, an overview of national trends and statistics describes retrenchment as a key institutional response. A look at some…

Effective college planning in a period of reduced resources requires that a comprehensive long-range plan, based on consensus, be in place before budgeting begins, so essential resources will not be damaged. The starting point for planning is a well-stated conception of the institution and of its subsystems and their interactions. (MSE)

This booklet for trustees of institutions of higher education offers guidelines for strategic financial decisions required in light of the financial challenges higher education faces in the 1990s and beyond. "Strategic response" is defined as a decision that requires changing a major policy, program, or practice and involves some risk. Five…