Melissa Roderick, Jenny Nagaoka, and Vanessa Coca focus on the importance of improving college access and readiness for low-income and minority students in urban high schools. They stress the aspirations-attainment gap: although the college aspirations of all U.S. high school students, regardless of race, ethnicity, and family income, have…

This "Fastback" provides suggestions for expanding or developing an academic summer program, which is an educational strategy that uses a program evaluation to achieve specific goals or outcomes designed to serve a selected student population in a school or community setting during the summer. Although no single model exists for these programs, a…

Twenty-five years ago a small volume of essays entitled "Crisis in the Humanities" was published containing an ominous message: namely, that the humanistic disciplines had arrived at a crossroad--a turning point at which a decisive change for better or worse was imminent. Humanistic scholarship appears to have declined since that…

The academic present and the academic future are linked to the past as a consideration of the combative, or agonistic, structure of historic academic life indicates. (JH)

To sample opinion on whether a junior college librarian needs special academic preparation, a 4-item questionnaire was sent to heads of 42 accredited library schools. It asked: (1) Have you special courses for students intending to become junior college librarians? (2) Do you offer special seminars for them? (3) Do you hold (or plan to hold)…

This study sought to determine whether there are differences of instructor attitude toward occupational and academic students that would detract from or counter the efforts to provide a satisfactory environment for the occupational student. A semantic differential instrument was constructed and administered to 148 faculty members from…

The team approach is described in this report as a useful mechanism, at both college-wide and divisional levels, for effective administration of academic affairs. An institutional academic team would include the leadership core for academic affairs, the academic dean, the division chairman, and the librarian, and would have the primary…

This paper presents concepts relevant to, and the benefits to be gained from, using a "systems" model in thinking about academic planning in general and curriculum development in particular. An attempt is made to show how the "systems" approach provides key tools for a diagnosis of academic structure in a college or university.…

Presents a revised version of the keynote address to the Central States Speech Association (1977) by Marie Nichols, Professor of Speech Communication, Emerita, University of Illinois. (MH)

Portland (Maine) Regional Vocational Technical Center conducted an integrated studies research project to identify and validate the academic skills and conpetencies embedded in its vocational programs. Recommendations were made to award integrated studies credit for vocational curricula that develop specified competencies in mathematics, social…

Cites the Rockefeller Commission's findings regarding humanistic studies. Outlines steps for bringing humanism back to the humanities, e.g., by clarifying the humanities' substance and identity, elucidating a cogent and persuasive rationale for their study, and underscoring the importance of a cultural/humanistic context for vocational training.…

Successful program development depends on a coordinated effort of the entire campus community. An overview of the academic program development process as observed by a faculty member and a director of admissions is provided. (MLW)

As professionals, teachers can become more effective and powerful by developing the skills to recognize scientifically based practice and, when the evidence is not available, use some basic research concepts to draw conclusions on their own. This paper offers a primer for those skills that will allow teachers to become independent evaluators of…

Describes a variety of alternative living arrangements at the University of Delaware, ranging from traditional dormitories and high-rise apartment buildings to coeducational halls, language houses, honors halls and coops. (CJ)