An expected wave of retirements has some institutions stockpiling professors by hiring them before openings occur, while many colleges and universities worry about the dwindling supply of high-quality faculty candidates. (MSE)

Money is frequently at the center of efforts to rename state colleges as universities, as institutions seek more state funds and business contributions and higher quality faculty and students. Opponents say the name must match the institutional reality. (MSE)

Increasingly, large universities are requiring their individual schools to be financially independent, encouraging more fiscal responsibility. However, none of the institutions turning to decentralization have succeeded in making all divisions self-supporting. (MSE)

Alverno College students receive no grades and do not compete with each other, but to graduate, they must demonstrate competence in eight "abilities": communication, analysis, problem solving, valuing, social interaction, taking responsibility for the global environment, effective citizenship, and aesthetic response. (MSE)

Observers see signs that higher education is focusing increasingly on the moral responsibilities of administrators, professors, and institutions in the proliferation of books, reports, and conferences addressing the topic. (MSE)

Decline in interest and employment in public-interest law may be due to cuts in legal services funding, heightened recruiting by private firms, mounting law student debt burdens, growing salary disparities in public-interest and corporate law, inadequate curricular attention to public-interest issues, and private law firm prestige. (MSE)

Some faculty members and administrators feel that the Dartmouth "Review" is beginning to cause serious, long-term damage to the college. Controversies sparked or fanned by the paper have cost the college the support of some alumni and have impaired its ability to attract some top students and faculty members. (MLW)

Some educators are questioning how well the college-admissions system is serving students and society. Some high school seniors are limiting their choices to a handful of elite institutions, while others are slipping through the cracks. The "hype" surrounding the admission process is causing needless anxiety. (MLW)

Prestige--of graduate program, faculty mentors, first job, and academic department--continues to wield enormous influence on faculty career patterns, according to two books: "Academic Labor Markets and Careers" (David W. Breneman and Ted I. K. Youn), and "A New Academic Marketplace" (Delores L. Burke). (MLW)

Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York face giant deficits in their state budgets. The financial impact of the 1986 federal tax reform law was underestimated by colleges and income estimates were overly optimistic for 1988 and 1989. Unpopular, new taxes are seen as the way to solve the budget crunch. (MLW)

The top 100 institutions in total federal obligations for fiscal 1987 in research and development are presented. Amounts shown represent total obligations from 15 federal agencies that accounted for about 95 percent of all federal obligations to universities and colleges in the United States. (MLW)

A University of Redlands course, intended as an introduction to ethics and morality for college freshmen, is described. The course, "Educational Odysseys," shared personal experiences and books that had helped shape the values of the college administrators who taught the course. (MLW)

Results of an annual national survey concerning compensation for college presidents are reported, including information on median salaries, differences by institution type and sector, workload, and fringe benefits and perquisites. (MSE)

The technology to replace printed journals with electronic counterparts is now available. While it may face a long battle for acceptance in many disciplines, it is also likely to have greater impact on traditional means of disseminating scholarship than will desktop publishing, and offers the potential for improved peer review. (MSE)

Data from a national survey concerning presidents' compensation and fringe benefits are presented. The percentage of presidents receiving various categories of benefits are tabulated, and median salaries are displayed by institution type and enrollment (full-time equivalent). (MSE)