The environments that seem to have the most impact on higher education are identified: demographic, economic, political, organizational, social, and technological. Insights from studies of institutions that were not successful in coping are presented. The part strategic planning can play in enabling institutions to cope with pressures is…

Changes in the composition of colleges and universities during the 1970s and the changes in the subpopulation of institutions with a high commitment to liberal arts education were studied. The effect these changes had on the diversity of the population and subpopulation is described. (MLW)

The behaviors and subsequent situations of two sets of colleges that experienced severe financial difficulties in the mid-1970s were examined. One set made a dramatic recovery; the other set did not. The more resilient group pursued a combination of adaptive and interpretive strategies. (MLW)

Approaches to categorizing types of adaptive response are developed, these types are explained, and the consequences for individual institutions of responses made and not made are assessed. The extent of substantive change are associated with institutional type as reflected in the Carnegie Classification System. (MLW)

The factors that contribute to the well-being of small colleges with a focus on style of leadership were studied. Seven characteristics of successful small colleges were identified: mission and purpose, opportunity consciousness, innovation and creativity, intuition, administration through people, effectiveness versus efficiency, and well-run…

The characteristics of the environment in which colleges and universities exist--enrollment trends, financial exigencies, federal policy changes, unexpected disaster--are creating conditions of decline that require a new set of administrative and organizational responses. Flexibility, innovation, and pro-activity are suggested for effective…

A cooperative project, involving Empire State College and other institutions within the State University of New York, is described that introduces faculties and administrators at traditional campuses to the nontraditional modes and methodologies of instruction at Empire State. Participants' evaluation of the project are provided. (MLW)

The correlation between faculty salaries and student tuition increases with rank and is highest for full professors. In a study of faculty salaries and tuition, over half of the variation in faculty salaries was accounted for solely by differences in tuition charges. (MLW)

The developmental issues associated with advisor-advisee relationships in graduate education are discussed with a focus on the creation of developmental settings. The advisor's relationship with the student and the academic and professional setting, and the advisee's relationship with the advisor and the academic and larger community settings are…

Higher education's contemporary emergence as a scholarly specialty is compared with the development of some other specialities--economics, political science, sociology. An interpretation of how fields become disciplines is offered and some parallels between the social sciences at the turn of the century and higher education today are explored.…

A study of the college presidency that uses "career trajectory" as a better way to understand administrative careers is described. There appears to be little advance planning either by the individual or the organization along a specific route that would lead to a college presidency. (MLW)

The university characteristics most important for explaining differing rates of achievement for students of comparable precollege learning are examined. Library facilities, financial resources, curriculum design, student body attributes, and faculty quality are seen as factors having some effect on student learning. (MLW)

The relationships within the Pennsylvania postsecondary education system are examined with a focus on planning for resource and enrollment decline, the relationship between private colleges and state government, and the state-level structure for enrollment and resource decision making. (MLW)

A Montana State University project aimed at integrating content on women into courses throughout the university is described. The 40 faculty who participated in the project reviewed their classroom materials and behaviors for sex bias; conducted research on women, sex roles, and gender; and integrated this research into their courses. (MLW)

The special consideration given to academics in American higher education creates a relatively closed political environment that increases higher education's resistance to change and diversification. However, since in this system the consumer has recognized rights, more study should be made of the interplay of consumers, academics, and political…