In April 2013, "NEJHE" launched its "New Directions for Higher Education series" to examine emerging issues, trends and ideas that have an impact on higher education policies, programs and practices. In this installment, DiSalvio interviews Richard Ekman, president of the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC), an association of…

Not surprisingly, low-income students are more likely than their higher-income peers to start postsecondary education at lower-cost community colleges than at four-year institutions. Add this fact to the booming enrollment at community colleges--approximately 7 million students or nearly half of all undergraduate students today--and one can…

Now that members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) have voted to approve a sweeping, if not radical, proposal giving the five largest athletic conferences "autonomy" to establish new governance rules regarding a compensation pay package for the recruitment of athletes, some important public policy concerns need to be…

A recent report by the College Board might be an indicator of how fast the sands of higher education are shifting. The prices that most people actually pay for college, which had remained stable for several years, are on the rise again, as tuition and other cost increases outpace financial aid awards. In its latest annual survey, the College Board…

Today's global economy requires a highly skilled labor force that is prepared to compete on the world stage. Studies from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Brookings Institution, and the Conference Board have all identified building and maintaining a highly skilled workforce as a national and local imperative. If America is…

Nearly 50 years after the landmark legislation aimed to open higher education to all Americans, colleges and students face a new set of threats. The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) was signed into law on Nov. 8, 1965 to strengthen the educational resources of colleges and universities and to provide financial assistance for students in…

No sooner has the Net Price Calculator (NPC) wave crashed ashore, the next wave of college-choice transparency in the form of third-party data aggregators is threatening to engulf American colleges and universities. Since last October, NPCs have become a fact of life for American colleges and universities. Some are doing the bare minimum to comply…

Since the start of the global financial crisis a little over two years ago, many concerns have been raised on how it might affect funding to higher education and whether or not it might hasten moves toward greater cost sharing. While, globally, some steps have been taken in this direction, in most countries, hard decisions have yet to be taken on…

In the context of the recent efforts to arrive at a federal budget, articles abound in the popular media and trade publications debating both the value of Pell Grants and their rising cost to the U.S. government. Both pros and cons of the debate hold value. Pell Grants are what enable many low-income families to send their children to college and,…

Today's fast-paced and Internet-driven society provides a lot of opportunities for innovation in the college financial aid world. As tuition costs continue to rise faster than average incomes, more students are turning to private lenders and other third-party organizations to finance their educations. While the power of online micro-giving has…

Among policymakers at the federal and state levels, as well as within the philanthropic community, there is an overdue awareness that the U.S. and its constituent states need a more highly educated citizenry and workforce. The country is already well behind several other countries in the proportion of its young adult population that has attained a…

The constant flow of alarming economic and business news, rapidly declining endowments and potential disruption to the student-loan industry have all beaten down optimism about higher education's financial and strategic outlook. Universities large and small have announced budget cuts, layoffs, salary freezes, capital spending slowdowns and other…

"The New England Journal of Higher Education" (formerly "Connection") presents its "Annual Directory of New England Colleges and Universities," providing a wealth of information on New England higher education. For more than a quarter of a century, this college and university directory has been the publication of record for those seeking important…

Surmounting a national--indeed global--recession in the wake of war is not new to America or its leaders. Born out of one of the nation's darkest moments of the 20th century were bold initiatives to empower those who served their country as well as all who sought to enter the American middle class. The GI Bill of Rights was one such measure, as…

In its first hundred days, the Obama administration demonstrated a strong commitment to expanding access to higher education. The economic stimulus package, known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), increased funding for the Pell Grant program and over the next two years, the maximum award will grow to $5,550 in 2010-2011--the…