As Americans near the end of the first decade of the new millennium, higher education in the United States is caught in a classic "good news/bad news" dilemma. The good news? Broad recognition of the importance of higher education to the country's future, along with larger federal funding increases than at any time in their history. The bad news? A system of finance that is stretched past the breaking point, because of a combination of state funding reductions, losses in endowment revenue, and public rebellion over continuous tuition increases. Despite the public's generally positive attitudes about higher education, concerns about college costs have become the flashpoint for growing public scrutiny about the leadership and direction of the academy. Boards, working closely with presidents, should press for information connecting the dots between how institutional resources are used and the results produced. Data-based evidence of how institutional resources are being used to achieve such public goals as improved access, increased degree attainment, improved student learning, and innovative research and development then must be communicated to the public and policymakers in understandable language. (Contains 6 resources.)