Presidents of southern colleges, universities, and life insurance companies met to develop strategies southern academic institutions might adopt to survive the 1980s. Inflation, faculty malaise, and the erosion of quality were the primary fiscal issues on the agenda, although declining enrollment figures also troubled many of the academic leaders present. It was suggested that southern academic administrators and faculty representatives should: examine such business strategies as seeking new markets and using personnel more effectively; help business leaders understand better what a college is; define the mission of academic institutions; outline steps for meeting future financial needs; explore collaborative ventures with other colleges and community organizations; encourage flexibility in faculty careers; select trustees wisely; and work within academia to establish criteria for survival. Business organizations can also help southern academic institutions by providing expertise, larger corporate grants, and a constructive alliance for public policy that will close the tuition gap between public and private schools and defend colleges from unreasonable taxation and unwarranted federal intrusion into education. The presidents concluded that the best chances for fiscal remedies in the South lie in joint ventures between business organizations and academic institutions. Their ultimate goal in these ventures is to ensure that citizens will have access to higher education in the public and private sectors. Additional material includes a program of the conference and a list of conference participants. (DC)