Prologue To The American System Of Higher Education

This book, the first ever overview of the subject, traces the history of the government of higher education from the middle ages through the 1950's and concludes with a look towards the future. It provides insight into the origins and progression of corporate organization associated with western universities, and explores whether and to what extent changing conditions raise the question of its obsolescence. It will be of interest to those who study higher education as well as the general public, governing board members, and professors.

Social, economic, and market conditions have posed a serious threat to the survival of small schools. This book focuses on the adaptation of small, private, and predominantly liberal arts colleges to the changing conditions and demands of higher education. The ability of small schools to remain a force in the American system of higher education is a compelling story and an example of the strategic management of academic organizations. The history and accomplishments of one school in particular, Keuka College in New York State, is profiled in detail, with emphasis on the role of the administration and the faculty in institutional decision-making. The study found that the increasing pressures to respond quickly to external conditions require a willingness to make decisions that often challenge traditional norms in the relationship between administration and faculty. The book also examines recent initiatives of other schools to competitively position themselves Accepting the reality that all colleges and universities compete for students, small schools have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to apply new and creative management practices, many of which are examined in the book. In addition to academic leaders, other audiences such as boards, faculty, historians and scholars of higher education will find the book a valuable reference.

Also included is a thought-provoking section on the dominant connection between higher education and the economy that evaluates how well the test of service to the labor market has been met and counters the charge that our educational system is to blame for the nation's decline in economic productivity and lack of international competitiveness.

Humanistic Critique of Education’s ten essays by noted scholars address the subject of educational policy, methods, ideology and more, with stress upon the rhetoric of contemporary teaching and learning. Humanistic Critique of Education focuses on education as symbolic action, as the foundation of discovery and, thus, as “equipment for living” in Kenneth Burke’s terms. These essays will spark dialogue about improving education in democratic societies through the lens of humanism.

Clark Kerr, former President of the University of California and a leader in higher education policymaking, offers his views of the turbulent decades when colleges and universities scrambled to provide faculty and facilities for the burgeoning student population, only to be faced later with economic depression and subsequent conservatism. From his unique vantage point, Kerr offers insights into the role of higher education—its performance under pressure, its changing climate, its efforts to serve the multiplicity of demands made upon it, and its success or failure in meeting those demands.