This investigation examined the history and durability of educational innovation at six colleges and universities (Pitzer College (California); New College of the University of South Florida; Hampshire College (Massachusetts); University of Wisconsin-Green Bay; University of California Santa Cruz; and The Evergreen State College (Washington) that were founded in the 1960s and 1970s as alternatives to mainstream American higher education. Innovation is defined as including interdisciplinary teaching and learning, student-centered education, egalitarianism, and experiential learning, with an institutional focus on teaching. The study's objective was to understand how innovative campuses preserve their founding missions in a changing social, political, and economic climate. During 4- to 6-day field visits during the 1995-96 academic year, 151 interviews were conducted with 164 faculty members, administrators, students, graduates, and trustees. Based on the findings, the following strategies are recommended to help ensure innovation in distinctive institutions of higher education: retain a significant number of founding faculty members until their retirements; recruit new faculty and administrators who are committed to innovation; establish reward systems that value innovation; provide open and flexible organizational structures; affiliate with a consortium or other institutions; recruit faculty with experience at other innovative campuses; and keep the student-to-faculty ratios small. (Contains 68 references.) (SW)