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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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Guest Post: College grad rates are ‘bad data’

Washington Post "College Inc." Blog

January 31, 2012

Patricia McGuire, president, Trinity Washington University, writes: According to the federal formula for calculating college graduation rates, close to a majority of all college students are dropouts or lost to the system entirely, even if they have earned degrees. For Trinity and many similar universities enrolling large numbers of students who transfer in, or who are part-time students, or who are "non-traditional" by many other factors, a majority of the degrees awarded go to students who don't count in the federal data system. The collegiate graduation rate may well be the most poorly constructed and misunderstood statistic in all of higher education.

Judging Patron Saints

Inside Higher Ed

January 26, 2012

Kenneth P. Ruscio, President, Washington and Lee University, writes: Sadly, almost any topic in our modern society becomes politicized, forcing us into a corner where we must choose to be for or against. Opinion comes first, interpretation comes later, if at all. Simplicity is the order of the day. Dealing with complexity is inconvenient. So it is with the irresistible urge to judge historical figures such as Thomas Jefferson, Robert E. Lee and even George Washington - deciding whether we are pro or con, and then injecting them into our contemporary partisan conflicts.

The Evolution of American Higher Education

U.S. News & World Report - Opinion Piece

January 25, 2012

James M. Danko, president, Butler University, writes: Like the auto and newspaper industries, American higher education needs to innovate and reinvent itself if it's going to survive, thrive, and recapture its earlier glory. Industries I would argue that we're already in the midst of a changing higher education model. My colleagues across the country and I are working to ensure that college is affordable and accessible. And we are looking carefully at our curricular and extracurricular programs to determine if the status quo truly meets the needs of our students.

Think Outside the Lunch Box

Chronicle of Higher Education - Opinion Piece

January 19, 2012

Thomas A. Kazee, president, University of Evansville, writes: We often fail to share what could be one of the most important contributions to the life of the community: the remarkable collective intellectual capital of our faculties. The aggregate intellectual capital represented by a faculty at an American college, even a small one, is vast: Economists, biologists, philosophers, engineers, and historians are teaching and researching the most pressing issues of the day. Yet in my experience, we too seldom take advantage of this resource in an intentional and systematic way.

Footprints

Inside Higher Ed - Alma Mater Blog

January 17, 2012

Jeff Abernathy, president, Alma College, writes: For all of our talk about the college’s carbon footprint, we at Alma have lately been discussing the many ways in which even a small college impacts the local community and environment. Some of the most exciting work I have done 18 months into my work at Alma College has been in collaboration with our local communities. I am still learning about the exciting work of building and nurturing community partnerships which will be key to the college's future as well as that of our town and region.

College diversity at risk

Washington Post - Opinion Piece

January 16, 2012

Lee C. Bollinger, president, Columbia University, writes: There have been few moments in our history when the nation so badly needed institutions to unify the country, overcome divisiveness, and dispel the unfounded "jealousies and prejudices" that our first president warned against. Yet if the Supreme Court decides to hear a case called Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin , colleges could be severely restricted in continuing to serve this unifying function.

Colleges owe much to veterans

Philadelphia Inquirer - Opinion Piece

January 4, 2012

Catharine Hill, president, Vassar College, writes: As the U.S. military presence in Iraq draws to a close, it's time for colleges and universities to increase their commitment to veterans who want more education. Selective private colleges in particular must step up and do our part. With more than two million veterans currently eligible for GI Bill tuition benefits, and even more expected to be added to this number over the coming years, there must be plenty of veterans for whom our institutions would indeed be a good option.

Why aren't universities teaching critical thinking?

Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas - Opinion Piece

January 1, 2012

Frederick G. Slabach, president, Texas Wesleyan University, writes: There is a consensus that the best way for undergraduate students to learn to think and reason is through frequent written and oral communication assignments accompanied by significant faculty feedback. Once upon a time in America, all college students received this kind of education. But no longer. Lectures are adequate for transferring information from one person to another, but they are inadequate, on their own, to help students develop higher-order thinking skills.

In defense of federal student aid

College Inc. Blog - Guest Post

December 7, 2011

Jay Lemons, president, Susquehanna University, writes: Fundamentally, in an era of austerity, I struggle with the question of how we can justify federal tax dollars supporting for-profit institutions when there is not adequate support for the not-for-profit sector that has served our nation very well throughout its history. Why should scarce federal tax dollars in the form of PELL grants go to the pockets of shareholders of companies when there are incredible needs in the not-for-profit sector?

In defense of a liberal education

Washington Post College Inc. Blog - Guest Post

December 2, 2011

Christopher Nelson, president, St. John's College in Annapolis, writes: Students headed for college are worried that they may not find employment when they graduate. Specialized career training at the undergraduate level might thus seem to have appeal. And yet, study after study suggests that the best preparation for the workforce of tomorrow, for the jobs that have yet to be created, is a liberal education -- the kind of education most especially found at the small residential liberal arts colleges across the country.


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