A dominant narrative exists that all regional public universities (RPUs) are striving for prestige and, if given the chance, would readily abandon their missions of facilitating educational access for marginalized students and increase admissions selectivity to privilege elite students. As a result of this dominant narrative, RPUs are largely…

This chapter provides individual and institutional strategies for confronting the historical challenges facing community college faculty, especially the prestige model, mission ambiguity, and declining resources.

This chapter describes the evolution of a regional public university president's communication strategy from being a fact-driven presenter to becoming the university's principal storyteller by integrating institutional data and metrics with meaningful stories from students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The case describes a "crisis of…

As the function of advising has shifted across the higher education landscape, the role of the academic advisor has also evolved. This chapter explores historic and emerging trends in the roles, functions, and professionalization of academic advising, while stressing the need for institutions to situate academic advising within their learning and…

This chapter presents four central themes that are distilled from the volume. First, regional public universities (RPUs) are mission-centered as access- and teaching-oriented and civically engaged institutions. Second, no matter how RPUs are sampled and classified, they are at the center of college access and equity. Third, RPUs deploy lean…

In this article, we provide an overview of the rise of academic capitalism based on the ongoing commodification and entrepreneurial trends in higher education. We begin by outlining the historical mission of higher education institutions (HEIs) and shift to discussing the current higher education landscape. In particular, we discuss how strategies…

This chapter explores the theoretical assumptions underlying both the IP system and its counternarrative, academic openness, to encourage stakeholders to look beyond extremes as depicted in political rhetoric, and find a compromise consistent with the common mission of faculty, universities, and publishers.

This chapter provides a critical perspective on the global quest to build world-class universities (WCUs), including global "ranking mania," excessive emphasis on university branding, and the attending threats to the traditional public good mission of the university. Alternatively, we offer suggestions on how rankings may be used to…

This chapter examines the existing literature in two major areas. A review of literature related to higher education's mission to educate for personal and social responsibility provides a rationale to refocus our collective attention on this important area of student learning and development. The chapter also reviews the current understanding…

This chapter captures the mission and spirit of the California State University in its efforts to institutionalize undergraduate research and support the success of students traditionally underrepresented in higher education.

At every college and university, students enroll with expectations and aspirations about the kind of experience and the kind of outcomes that the institution delivers. When those expectations are met and exceeded, students are satisfied and likely to remain committed to their college choice. When their experience falls short of their expectations,…

Student movement between institutions can no longer be deemed atypical. Approximately one-third of all students transfer during their college career and of those who transfer, 25% will transfer more than once. While movement from two-year to four-year institutions is still the most prevalent transfer pathway, it is important to note that 43% of…

Those who work within adult higher education know there is something unique about their perspective on academic life. Employed in the adult education arena in one capacity or another since 1993, the author has had the privilege of working at an institution with a small adult program and an institution with a very large adult program. In this…

Adult degree programs have been seen as a win-win solution for private colleges and adult learners, but their innovative and often-entrepreneurial postures are not a natural fit with governance structures in more traditional institutions. Through narrative and illustrative vignettes, this chapter presents an overview of efforts employed by some…

North Park University's adult program has moved steadily from a centralized governance structure toward a more distributed structure in many ways. The School of Adult Learning hires its own faculty, some of whom are full time in the adult program. The school also has autonomy over academic policy. Ultimately, this academic autonomy has fostered…