This book explores how universities relate their built environment to academic discourse, asserting that the character of universities is often a charming dialogue between order and disarray. It contains numerous photographs and building plans for example campuses throughout the world. In part 1, "The Campus," chapters are: (1) "Academic Mission…

This study identified seven categories of influence of local college governing boards, based on how they were established and their members appointed. Information was drawn from questionnaires sent to staffs of statewide coordinating bodies and multicampus governing boards; from statutes, local board policies, bylaws, and handbooks; and from…

This paper analyzes the negative effects on private colleges of state subsidies provided to state-run colleges, noting the increasing proportion of students attending public colleges and the closing of more than 300 private colleges between 1969-70 and 1992-93. It urges legislators to eliminate direct subsidies to universities, to require…

Colleges and universities are privatizing various institutional components and are seeking greater autonomy from state government. In defining privatization, the paper makes the distinction between privatizing and contracting, and notes six areas where a good or service can be owned or managed by the government or by the private sector: ownership…

This qualitative study examined the experiences and impressions of first-time freshmen at Boise State University (BSU) in Idaho. Twenty-five freshmen completed weekly open-ended interviews, kept journals, and participated in an end-of-term group meeting during the fall term of 1996. The results indicated that most students found getting…

This study sought to predict first-term grade point average (GPA), spring reenrollment, and enrollment one year later for 235 new freshmen students at Boise State University (BSU) in Idaho. Data included a wide variety of academic and personal information gathered from two surveys at the beginning and the end of fall term of 1995. The study found…

This study examined distance education at Tennessee Board of Regents institutions of higher education. Both four-year and two-year institutions were surveyed via electronic mail. Thirty-five percent of the surveys were returned. The results indicated that all responding institutions were involved in distance education, specifically to reach…

A government-commissioned study in Australia investigated the experiences of a number of countries with performance-based funding of universities and examined the potential for its application in Australian higher education. The study found various forms of performance-based funding in different countries (England, Scotland, Germany, Netherlands,…

This report presents tables and graphs which summarize data on institutions of higher education in Kentucky from 1987 through 1996. Introducory material provides definitions of terms, lists public and independent colleges and universities in the state, and lists degree program offerings at Kentucky state-supported institutions. Tables and graphs…

This report is a compilation of 1997 default rates for institutions participating in the Federal Perkins Loan Program based on the cohort of borrowers who entered repayment status in the 1995-96 reporting period. Data is presented by state and individual institution and includes: (1) number of borrowers who entered repayment status in 1995-96; (2)…

The argument of this book is that the modern American university has given up its responsibility to provide a thoughtful, coherent, and well-articulated education to undergraduates. It is asserted that the university should be neither a trade school nor a repository of tradition, but rather an institution with the responsibility for the…

This report examines undergraduate persistence and time to degree at public universities in Illinois, focusing on the year-to-year persistence of cohorts of freshmen students admitted to 10 universities between 1983 and 1993. It also examines the public university graduating class of 1993-94 and describes the factors influencing time to degree. It…

This study seeks to examine the manner and extent to which the United States' leading higher education institutions are adapting their undergraduate international studies and area studies degree programs to the realities of the post Cold War world. The study used data provided by a 1994 survey of nearly 800 undergraduate international and area…

The completion rate and median time to degree of three doctoral cohorts at the University of Manitoba were analyzed by gender and by field of study and the results were compared to studies elsewhere. To evaluate factors affecting students' progress, a mail questionnaire was sent in the fall of 1993 to all students (N=105) first admitted to the…

This paper discusses how faculty can and do develop a spirit in the classes they teach and thus become more effective teachers. This paper focuses on classes at a community college and at a university. Faculty and students from all types of college and university classes were interviewed. The classes studied were imbued with a breath of life, a…