Real change in education has been hampered by at least three forces: education's lack of a vision of where society is moving and how education should play a part in this movement; the human makeup of educational institutions; and the need for the development of a new model for financing public postsecondary education. Regardless of these difficulties, a paradigm shift is required in postsecondary education to make the educational process more focused on student needs, more efficient, more convenient. A model needs to be developed that shifts the cost burden of education from taxpayers. The Educational Mall concept represents a 21st Century educational delivery center integrating a broad range of collegiate-level education services with area business and industry and community redevelopment. Included within the mall could be: (1) stores which double as merchandising and marketing laboratories; (2) a small business incubator offering training and counseling; (3) an assessment center; (4) food services which meet the needs of the community and serve as training labs for culinary arts programs; (5) a business skills center; (6) a child care center providing child care, parenting classes, and early childhood education training; (7) a basic skills center; (8) a high technology learning center; (9) a contract education center; (10) a tutorial center; (11) a fitness center; (12) a women's center providing re-entry, health, and wellness counseling; (13) a conference center; (14) a dental clinic to provide services and training; and (15) an entertainment center. The idea of an education mall is driven by such factors as limited state and national funding for education; a continuing need for better-trained workers; increasing part-time college attendance; students' needs to combine upper- and lower-division classes and occupational and recreational classes at one convenient location; the expense of traditional campuses; the role of assessment in retraining; and the ability of learning resource centers to interact with various databases and interactive cable television for instructional delivery. (KP)