This paper summarizes the first year of research at Tompkins Cortland Community College, Dryden, New York, to develop an alternative process for determining characteristics of graduates and leavers from the college, and to uncover attitudes of those students about their college experience. The paper summarizes findings to date, although the author…

Many adjustment problems may stem from the difference between initial expectations and later, experienced perceptions. To test this theory in relation to the social climate of university living units, and to assess initial perceptions and predictions of the future in relation to level of social exploration as a coping style, 92 entering freshmen…

The conditions that intensify conflict avoidance by the central administration in making strategic decisions, and the consequences of such avoidance for the management of college affairs, are discussed. The implication of an emerging decision-making style for adapting the organization to changing environments is also considered. Some of the…

The effect of differences in student and faculty learning styles on student evaluation of faculty was studied at the University of Alabama's College of Education. It was assumed that the professor's learning style influenced teaching behavior. In the final week of the spring semester, the Productivity Environmental Preference Survey (PEPS) was…

A qualitative study was conducted of the contributions that institutional leaders make to fostering conditions that encourage high-quality out-of-class experiences for college students. A nine-member research team conducted the study. A process of nominations, recommendations and review yielded the selection of 14 institutions for the study. Site…

A survey designed to examine some aspects of the day-to-day campus environment (for both men and women) is presented. Many people on campus have become increasingly concerned with subtle and obvious forms of sex-based discrimination, and often men and women have very different experiences, even when they study in the same classroom. Questionnaire…

School and college officials should make it clear that they believe that faculty self-esteem is the central variable in student learning. A plan for better learning through better treatment of teachers would include the following steps: (1) announce that the institution intends to create conditions that will enhance the professional self-esteem of…

At present, departments of communication do not have the same political status as other college departments, even though they provide more than their share of tuition revenue. To establish themselves as a viable political force, departments of communication must create an observable impact on the daily operating procedure of other academic…

Information is presented about the history of student unions, purposes of the college union, programs, services, facilities, financing, along with basic facts about the Association of College Unions-International (ACU-I). Origins of the college union in England and the United States are traced, and it is noted that the union has rapidly spread…

Reasons for the long-range success of the Los Angeles Community College District's evaluation system for its handicap program are explored in this report, using a force field analysis of facilitating and restraining factors. First, introductory material cites previous reports exploring various aspects of the evaluation system. Next, the following…

Responding to challenges questioning the possibility of distinctively Catholic higher education, this article seeks to establish an integrated vision for Catholic universities. Relying on the works of Philip Gleason, Ignatius of Loyola, and Bernard Lonergan, the author provides a framework for the important research function of Catholic…

There has been growing interest in the design of campus environments. Since environments are related to growth and/or dysfunction, a program designed to heighten the fit between students and their environment is advantageous. The Resident Environment Adaption Program (REAP) is a five stage service designed to enable students to heighten the fit…

Two essays and two commentaries on leadership in higher education in the 1980s are presented. In "Education Administrators and Professionals," Chris Argyris considers the decline of public confidence in institutions and professionals by elaborating the concepts of single-loop (detecting and correcting error without altering underlying…

An international study of adaptation and coping of students, faculty, and administrators involved with foreign student exchange is examined using data obtained in 11 countries--Brazil, Canada, the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Hong Kong, India, Iran, Japan, Kenya, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The following are included:…

The proceedings of a conference for administrators, faculty, and staff of developmental education programs are summarized. An introductory section outlines the history, development, and definition of developmental education in the United States and gives statistics on the number and percentage of various institution types reporting developmental…