Institutional researchers can take advantage of a variety of resources for understanding sustainability issues and keeping abreast of developments on this front. Models exist both within and outside of higher education for analyzing and presenting data. Sustainability Indicators in Comprehensive Sustainability Reports and Fact Books are appended.…

The following paper culminates a year of research conducted by researchers at E[superscript 3] Alliance and Texas State University and sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The following reports on promising practices observed and reported at Manor New Tech High School (MNTH), a Texas Science Technology Engineering Mathematics (T-STEM)…

The NEAIR 2008 Conference Proceedings is a compilation of papers presented at the Providence, Rhode Island, conference. Papers in this document include: (1) Assessing Institutional Effectiveness: The Mission Engagement Index as a Measure of Progress on Mission Goals (Ellen M. Boylan); (2) Building, Sustaining, and Developing Research University…

Background/Context: In the early 1990s, the Spencer Foundation instituted an Institutional Research Training Grant (RTG) program to improve the preparation of the next generation of education researchers. UCLA received an RTG in the first round of competition. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: UCLA's Spencer RTG program sought to…

This chapter describes several examples of institutional use of state- and college-level tracking data to benchmark performance, improve student success, and enhance program effectiveness.

Many public university systems rely on their own institutional research (IR) offices, in addition to the IR offices from their member institutions, to help conduct the work of the university system. In this chapter, the author illustrates the type of work conducted by system-level IR offices using a nontraditional data source that can be used to…

This volume traces the history of Eisenhower College (New York) from its inception in 1961 to its chartering in 1965, its opening in 1968, its first commencement in 1972, its near closure in 1974, its acquisition by Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in 1979, its eventual closure in 1983, and the aftermath. The history in case study format is…

This paper reviews the literature using the word "crisis" in relation to current higher education and analyzes claims of three specific crises of the past 25 years. It considers reasons why educational institutions may be particularly vulnerable to claims of crisis and offers some ideas about the nature of higher education crises and the…

The compilation of cross-institutional comparative information to support a college or university's goals is an effective yet politically dangerous venue of institutional research activity. Selecting a group of institutions for comparison can often be a major task involving external governing agencies, key institutional administrators, and…

A study was conducted to determine whether alumni who were previous scholarship recipients were more likely to pledge financial assistance to their alma mater than were alumni who were not financially assisted. A total of 140 alumni were to be contacted through a regular phonathon, with a special script for the 70 previous scholarship recipients.…

Workload clauses in 92 collective bargaining contracts provides one basis for predicting future trends and tradeoffs. (Editor)

The distribution of course start times throughout the day at Arizona State University was analyzed to improve classroom utilization at a large urban university. Departments responsible for peak period utilization were also identified, and students were surveyed to determine interest in taking courses outside the peak period. It was found that…

The development and operations of the North Carolina Association for Institutional Research (NCAIR) are traced, with attention to specific meetings and activities. Events that led to the establishment of NCAIR are noted, including the work of the 1972-1973 planning committee. The association's mission is identified as: promoting professional…

The Office of Community Research at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts, provides community access to the college's educational resources and professional expertise. (Author)