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Post-Annual Meeting Resources

Even though the 2012 NAICU Annual Meeting is history, you can continue to benefit and learn from the many presentations and speeches that were offered, and are now available on line.


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Another Highlight


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Higher Education Reform/Innovation


U.S. college ratings game set for shakeup

Reuters
February 3, 2012

An elite California college's admission this week that it tried to boost its reputation by inflating the test scores of incoming freshmen has stoked a heated debate over the outsized influence and controversial methodology of commercial "best college" lists. But behind the furor over the fraud at Claremont McKenna College is a crescendo of calls from academics, politicians and parents for new rating systems that would measure what really matters: how effectively an institution educates.

No Money Down!

Inside Higher Ed
February 2, 2012

In January a group of students from the University of California at Riverside proposed a new funding model for the University of California system that seeks to solve two of the system's biggest problems: unpredictable and large decreases in state appropriations, and the steady increase in tuition costs. Under the students' plan, students in the system would pay no upfront costs for their education but would agree to pay 5 percent of their income to the system for 20 years after graduating and entering the workforce.

A Radical Idea To Combat the Rising Cost of College

Time Magazine - Moneyland
February 2, 2012

Instead of raising tuition, Fix UC suggests getting rid of it altogether. Under the proposal, in-state students would pay nothing upfront to attend any University of California campus. But upon gaining employment after graduation, they would be required to pay back 5% of their income for 20 years.

An Education System That Is ‘Built to Last’

Chronicle of Higher Education - Innovations Blog
February 2, 2012

Educational success isn't a goal like beating the Nazis in World War II - when it's done we can all go home to our farms and factories. Rather, these goals represent the kickoff to lasting and growing success. But the deadline language by itself may not invite us to "build to last." Our aim should be an educational system that yields growing success for decades to come. We by no means have a blueprint to offer, but we can identify some key elements of a high functioning system.

Higher education’s $64,000 question

Washington Post "College Inc." Blog - Guest Post
February 2, 2012

Higher education is a diffuse, decentralized profession, with institutional and professional diversity and autonomy being highly prized aspects of our work. However, our cherished autonomy must be coupled with shared professional understandings about how we can best serve our clients, students, and society more generally. The publication of "Committing to Quality" and the endorsement by these organizations move higher education toward speaking with one voice on the central issue of student learning and the role of gathering, reporting, and using evidence in improving it.

Secretary Duncan, Senator Kerry, college presidents to convene at Emerson College (Emerson Website)

Emerson Website
February 1, 2012

Emerson College President Lee Pelton, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, and presidents from several Massachusetts colleges will gather at Emerson on Monday, February 6, to discuss innovative higher education programs aimed at preparing students to thrive in today’s economy. Following the private meeting, Pelton, Duncan, and Kerry will meet with students for an hour-long question and answer session.

Free Courses, Elite Colleges

Inside Higher Ed
January 27, 2012

Udemy, a company that allows anyone to create and sell courses through its online platform, has announced a new area of its site, called The Faculty Project, devoted to courses by professors at a number of top institutions, such as Colgate, Duke University, Stanford University, Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, the University of Virginia, Dartmouth College and Vassar College. While Udemy is a for-profit enterprise, the Faculty Project courses will be free.

Obama College Aid Proposal Puts a Focus on Affordability

New York Times
January 27, 2012

President Obama is proposing a financial aid overhaul that for the first time would tie colleges' eligibility for campus-based aid programs - Perkins loans, work-study jobs and supplemental grants for low-income students - to the institutions' success in improving affordability and value for students, administration officials said. "Let me put colleges and universities on notice: If you can't stop tuition from going up, the funding you get from taxpayers will go down," he said. Even without specifics, that raised hackles in higher-education circles.

A Disrupted Higher-Ed System

Chronicle of Higher Education - Commentary
January 26, 2012

The "disruption" of the higher-ed market is a popular refrain these days. Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, envisions a future in which every industry will be disrupted and "rebuilt with people at the center." In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Sandberg talked specifically about the gaming industry, which has been upended by the popularity of social-gaming venues, such as Words With Friends and Farmville. But what if we applied her people-centered vision to higher ed?

Why Get a Pricey Diploma When Badges Tell Employers More?

Forbes Magazine - Column
January 26, 2012

The biggest push for badge certification is coming from an unlikely source: industry and education reform leaders, not the post-secondary education sector. A leader of the charge is the respected Mozilla Foundation, best known for its popular Firefox web browser. Mozilla's working document, "Open Badges for Lifelong Learning," is not only a good primer on the badge revolution, but a persuasive introduction to "connected learning ecology," a concept that is upending our ossified allegiance to top-down conventionally walled classrooms.

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