Since Montana's establishment of a state university system in 1893, residents have been divided over how many institutions are needed and what programs should be offered, but the situation is worsened by the state's current poor economic climate and the too-large system. (MSE)

Although the 1980s period of belt-tightening in higher education meant layoff of many tenured professors, financially troubled colleges are trimming part-time and nontenured faculty jobs and offering encouraging early retirement in the current period of retrenchment. However, the proportion of tenured faculty has shrunk as the overall size of the…

While tenured professors at financially troubled institutions are facing hiring freezes, salary cuts, tight travel budgets, and reduced office help, four-year colleges and universities are doing whatever they can to avoid dismissing tenured faculty for financial reasons. Some institutions may be running out of alternatives. (MSE)

West Virginia officials and Governor Arch A. Moore, Jr. have been unable to reach agreement on how to accommodate a mandated late-in-the-year budget cut, with some officials questioning the move's legality and the governor rejecting the regents' proposed early closing for state colleges and universities. (MSE)

Higher education officials in economically depressed Alaska are proceeding with a plan to merge the state's community colleges with the three-campus university system despite vigorous lobbying by community college advocates and substantial local support for the community colleges. (MSE)