Describes a week-long program sponsored by the Appalachian Regional Commission that brought together over 500 participants from middle-level management of small and mid-sized businesses, local governments, and public and nonprofit service agencies located in Appalachia. Participants were offered courses in total quality management, leadership…

At Brigham Young University, the admissions office organized its staff in teams and built a computer software system to support the teams. An improved worker sense of responsibility and increased emphasis on human factors resulted in dramatically increased productivity as measured by number of admissions applications processed and completed.…

Difficulties in the development of adult education programs in research-oriented, elite universities are discussed, focusing on the differences in traditional values and objectives of adult and university education. Organizational conditions at the University of Louvain (Belgium) that have proven conducive to a successful adult education program…

Describes the roles and relationships that developed among librarians, faculty, and higher education institutions in the Integrated Academic Information Management Systems environment, funded by the National Library of Medicine. Organizational and management issues that emerged as librarians became integral to teaching and administration are…

A survey of library science librarians was conducted to assess their collection development strategies in response to the changing direction of library science education. Survey results indicate that traditional library science subject areas continue to be actively collected at a high level with the greatest growth in technological areas. (11…

Addresses training in the context of organizing and implementing a Total Quality Management (TQM) initiative. The customer service implications and relevant training or skill implications for the following phases are described: (1) exploration and commitment; (2) organizing for quality; (3) start up; and (4) expansion and integration. (Contains 18…

Chronicles the process of change begun at the Harvard College Library in 1990. Key factors are analyzed, including support from the University Library, Association of Research Libraries, and Council on Library Resources; strong leadership; organizational development; composition of task forces; time frame; concurrent changes; and development of a…

It is argued that policies decentralizing the governance of educational systems, although appealing in the abstract, tend to be fundamentally ambivalent and in conflict with powerful forces favoring centralization. Tensions surrounding the issue of decentralization are discussed, with emphasis on the relationship between decentralization and…

Four prerequisites for college and university departmental change and renewal have been suggested: dedication to teamwork; collective dialog and inquiry about effective teaching; commitment to quality control and rewarding collective goals; and leadership of a purposeful chair. These are discussed in relation to conditions mitigating against…

Discusses the need to develop new models for collection development in academic libraries, based on experiences at the University of Arizona. Highlights include changes in the organizational chart; focusing on users' information goals and needs; integrative services; shared resources; interlibrary loans; digital technology; and funding. (LRW)

Discussion of various quality control strategies in American higher education looks at and compares Total Quality Management (TQM), outcomes assessment, Deming's 14 points, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the ISO 9000 series, restructuring, reengineering, and performance indicators. It is suggested that colleges and universities will…

Outlines ten principles important for the successful practice of outcomes assessment, based on the experience of a variety of institutions. Notes several salient barriers to success (lack of faculty support, changes in institutional leadership and circumstances, limitations in assessment tools and methods, insufficient student involvement,…

Discusses the early days of the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) in Europe, and developments in its usage. Highlights include negotiations between OCLC and France; retrospective conversion; reorganization and restructuring; the gradual approach to international use of OCLC; problems facing European libraries using OCLC; and benefits. (AEF)

Initiatives taken at University of Michigan to address complex nature of diversity and multiculturalism in higher education are described, including a 1988 administrative strategic plan to link academic excellence and social diversity among faculty and students, a plan to improve women's representation among faculty, a longitudinal study of impact…

The administration of the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa) is committed to increasing the number of black faculty and providing support to reduce their isolation. This year, for the first time, blacks make up 51% of the student population. The new president, a white man, appears to have won strong, broad-based support within the…