INTERNATIONALIZING FRESHMAN COMPOSITION I AND II THROUGH LITERATURE AND FILM: A CROSS‐CULTURAL APPROACH

This recent study sought to examine the marketing orientations found in community, junior and technical colleges and to relate these orientations to enrollment trends within those same institutions. “High” and “low” marketing orientation campuses were defined based upon a marketing typology developed for the study. Analyses of variance revealed differences between these two types of campuses in terms of the stability of their full‐and part‐time headcount enrollments for a nine‐year period. Among other findings, the study describes the diversity of marketing approaches employed by the nation's two‐year colleges. Results of the study indicate that chief executives can look to establishing sound marketing management organizations, sensitive marketing intelligence systems, and efficient marketing planning and control systems to influence enrollment trends.     

Faculty employment and R&D expenditures at Research universities

This study uses panel data to examine the relationship between faculty employment and external R&D expenditures at Research and Doctoral institutions over a 15-year period of time. On average, a 1% increase in the number of full-time faculty is associated with about 0.2% increase in total R&D expenditure. Further, a one percentage point increase in the share of full-time faculty members that are not on tenure-track lines is associated with a decrease in total external R&D expenditure by about 0.6%, suggesting that full-time faculty that are tenured or on tenure-tracks are the main category of faculty that generate external R&D funding. Further, our results suggest that an increasing usage of part-time faculty, holding constant the institution's full-time faculty size, boosts an institution's external R&D expenditures. On average, a one percentage point increase in the share of part-time faculty members is associated with a 0.44% increase in the total external R&D expenditures. Increases in graduate student enrollments are associated with increases in external R&D expenditures. Finally, an institution's external R&D expenditures are significantly influenced by both the amount of its own institutionally financed research expenditures and the level of federal funding for research.     

中国义务教育资源利用及配置不均衡研究

本研究利用1997年到2000年的全国县级数据对中国义务教育的资源利用和配置不均衡状况进行了描述性统计分析。研究发现,虽然不同地区之间资源利用模式相近,但地区之间的生均支出水平差异很大,特别是农村与城市之间、沿海省份与其它地区之间的支出差异非常明显。虽然非民族地区的支出水平高于民族地区,但差距相对较小。本研究计算的生均教育支出的不平等指数一致反映,2000年小学和初中阶段生均支出不均衡程度非常高。塞尔系数分解发现,省内不平等占到总不平等指数的三分之二到四分之三之间,省间不平等占到总不平等指数的四分之一到三分之一。而城乡不平等占省内不平等的比重全国平均为三分之一。城乡之间的巨大差距因地区间差距过大在总不平等中不能凸显。比较1997年和2000年的计算结果发现,总不平等程度在这3年中有所增加但变化并不明显。但是,支出分布上端与下端的相对差距拉大了。本最后探讨了以上研究结果相应政策的含义。     

我国高职高专学杂费的地区差异研究

目前,我国不同地区高职高专教育在生均学杂费绝对数、生均学杂费占生均教育经费比率、生均学杂费占居民可支配收入比率等方面存在较大差异.高等教育学杂费地区差异固然难以避免,但必须控制在合理区间内.提高财政性教育经费的投入力度,可以降低高职高专教育经费对学杂费收取的依赖;积极开展办学成本核算,可以提高财政性教育经费投入的科学性和地区均衡性;实施差额学杂费政策,可以减轻弱势群体的学杂费支出负担.     

Community College Mission: Re(S)ources Make a Difference

Community colleges are unique among higher education institutions in their potential access to local appropriations as well as state funding. A total of 26 states reported to the Education Commission of the States in 2001 that community colleges in their states received some share of local funding. Using data for 781 public community colleges, we explored the implications of resource dependency theory for mission differentiation between dual-funded and state-funded colleges. Significant differences were observed in their student bodies, programming, expenditures, and outcomes. These differences have implications for the increasing dependence on state funding for community colleges and the roles these institutions play.     

ASSESSING THE FINANCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL CONCERNS OF ARKANSAS COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL COLLEGES: A MODEL APPROACH

We surveyed Arkansas community and technical colleges to determine the extent to which these institutions had been affected, during the past 3 years, by tight budgets, volatile enrollments, unstable state support, and other unfavorable forces. In addition, we requested information concerning methods used by these institutions to address such problems. The survey instrument collected data pertaining to institutional demographics, budgetary trends, tuition trends, faculty issues, expenditure control methods used, institutional advancement activities, projections as to future financial directions, and staff development needs. The findings indicate that enrollments at most Arkansas community and technical colleges are increasing and budgets are growing, but often in amounts inadequate to compensate for rising costs. Arkansas 2‐year institutions are responding to this challenge by raising tuition, increasing the use of part‐time faculty, and seeking new sources of revenue. Staff development needs were identified for those functional areas in which additional training and development will enhance staff members’ ability to respond to changing economic conditions. This survey can be replicated in other community college systems, thus serving as a model for assessing the financial and institutional concerns of community and technical colleges nationwide.     

Did the Recession Impact Student Success? Relationships of Finances,Staffing and Institutional Type on Retention

Economic recessions impact higher education institutions in complex ways. Several analyses have examined the influence of the 2007–2009 recession on tuition, enrollments, revenues, and expenditures, but the connection of these resource allocation patterns to a student success outcome—namely, retention—is limited. This study examined relationships among institutional expenditures, tuition, and staffing patterns on first-year retention rates at private and public institutions in 2007, 2009 and 2011: before, during, and after the economic recession. Private and public institutions increased tuition during this time period and increased expenditures. Expenditures most directly educating students (i.e. instruction) and institutional selectivity were positively associated with retention. However, public and private institutions differed in how they allocated their expenditures. That the findings correspond with past research investigating relationships between resource allocation and retention illustrate principles of the resource dependency theory (Pfeffer and Salancik 1978): institutions impacted by external economic changes, adjust revenues, staffing, and expenditures during economic changes.     

美国社区学院与日本短期大学的比较研究

美国社区学院和日本的短期大学都属于地方性短期高等教育机构,都以其收费低廉、开放武录取、办学方式灵活多样赢得了当地民众的支持和欢迎,在各自国家的经济建设和社会发展中发挥着重要的作用。但美国社区学院与日本的短期大学在办学规模、管理模式及学生性别比例等方面存在着较大的差异。深入系统地研究美国社区学院和日本短期大学的历史和现状,比较其异同,揭示其发展规律对于加快我国高等教育改革的步伐具有十分重要的借鉴意义。     

Expansion and Stratification of Higher Educational Opportunity in Taiwan

The global phenomenon of higher educational expansion and opportunity is one of the major social changes since World War II. In 1949, only 1 university and 3 junior colleges existed in Taiwan. After 60 years, the number of higher education institutions had grown to 163, including 147 universities/colleges and 16 junior colleges. The dialectic between equity and access of higher educational opportunity has been a key area for debate among Taiwan educators and policy makers over the last decade. Along with the increasing number of higher education enrollments, the issue related to the stratification of higher educational opportunity becomes an increasingly important issue. Based on premises of two theories—Maximum Maintained Inequality and Effectively Maintained Inequality—the authors analyze the relationship between expansion and stratification of higher educational opportunity via one nationwide higher education survey administered by the Center on Research for Educational Evaluation and Development (CREED) at the National Taiwan Normal University. Findings indicate that the expansion of higher education does not necessarily parallel equal access to higher education. This conclusion is reinforced based on the study's findings that ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender inequalities have generally decreased for higher education students attending the less selective vocational track but increased for those attending the more selective general track.     

INSTITUTIONAL SELECTIVITY AND INSTITUTIONAL EXPENDITURES: Examining Organizational Factors that Contribute to Retention and Graduation

Many institutions of higher education increasingly are concerned with retention and graduation rates. Focusing on private Baccalaureate Liberal and General colleges and universities, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between institutional selectivity and institutional expenditures and retention and graduation rates. Framed by Berger’s (2001–2002) view that organizational behavior can impact student departure, this inquiry examined if expenditures for instruction, academic support, student services, facilities, institutional support, and institutional grants (i.e. student financial aid) could predict retention and graduation rates at baccalaureate-granting institutions. Institutional selectivity and institutional expenditures, specifically those that directly contributed to students’ academic integration, were found to contribute significantly to retention and graduation rates. Recommendations are suggested, including using the results to inform resource allocation strategies that can enhance retention and graduation rates.     

Path analysis and residual plotting as methods of environmental scanning in higher education: An illustration with applications and enrollments

In this study we propose using path analysis and residual plotting as methods supporting environmental scanning in strategic planning for higher education institutions. As an illustration, path models of three levels of independent variables, that is, socioeconomic background, current economic variables, and educational variables, are developed. The dependent variables measuring applications and enrollments at a research university, Virginia Tech, and enrollments at four-year institutions in Virginia are regressed on the independent variables. The residuals from the multiple regression models are plotted on the county maps of Virginia to identify the geographic regions in which the applications and enrollments at Virginia Tech and the enrollments in colleges and universities of Virginia are higher or lower than expected according to the models. The implications of the variables in the models and the geographic distributions of residuals for strategic planning decisions are discussed.     

Educational expenditures and student engagement: When does money matter?

The few studies focusing on the relationships between higher education expenditures and student outcomes have produced contradictory results. This study hypothesized that the lack of consistent relationships is a function of the fact that the effects of expenditures on outcomes are mediated by student engagement. Furthermore, it is expected that the relationships between expenditures and outcomes are contingent on the characteristics of the students and institutions being studied. The present research examined the relationships between higher education expenditures and students’ engagement in educationally purposeful activities, after controlling for a variety of student and institutional characteristics. Using data from a nationally representative sample of colleges and universities, the findings indicated that the relationships between expenditures and student engagement are very complex. Relationships differed by institutional control, students’ year in school, and the type of engagement measure included in the analysis.     

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Across State Contexts: Does the Distribution of Enrollments Make a Difference?

Growing accountability pressures, accompanied by a lack of readily accessible measures of institutional performance, have led to an increasing focus on graduation rates. Although previous research has illuminated myriad factors influencing students’ likelihood of educational success, it has not paid adequate attention to how state contexts may shape student outcomes. I build on the small but growing body of research exploring the role of state characteristics in facilitating student success in higher education. Controlling for a range of state and individual attributes, I examine how one aspect of the state context––the distribution of enrollments in 2 vs. 4-year public institutions––is related to bachelor’s degree attainment of students attending public 4-year colleges and universities. The results suggest that the larger the proportion of students attending community colleges in a state, the higher the probability of bachelor’s degree attainment at public 4-year institutions. This appears to be a product of student sorting: the presence of community colleges facilitates sorting of students into higher education in a way that is associated with higher degree completion at public 4-year institutions. These findings have important implications for research on student outcomes and policies aimed at evaluating the performance of public 4-year institutions.     

The Relationship Between Institutional Expenditures and Degree Attainment at Baccalaureate Colleges

Enhancing student persistence and effectively managing financial resources present important challenges to higher education. Surprisingly, existing student persistence and attrition models offer little insight into the potential links between institutional expenditures and student persistence. This study examines the impact of institutional expenditures on 6-year cohort graduation rates at 363 Carnegie-classified Baccalaureate I and II institutions. The results suggest a positive and significant relationship between instructional and academic support expenditures and cohort graduation rates. As a result, researchers might consider ways to integrate expenditure variables into student persistence models. Institutions also might seek out ways to shift financial resources to areas that enhance student persistence and degree attainment. Additional research may serve to strengthen student persistence frameworks and improve links between persistence research and financial decisionmaking in colleges and universities.     

Does becoming a Member of the Football Bowl Subdivision Increase Institutional Attractiveness to Potential Students

In recent years, a number of colleges and universities have made the decision to pursue membership in the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) with the idea that participating in higher profile intercollegiate football can help attract students to their institution. This belief, however, has not been empirically examined. Using difference-in-differences estimation, this study examined freshmen application trends at three colleges and universities (Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, and Western Kentucky University) which moved from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) to the FBS in the mid-2000s relative to similar FCS institutions which did not move to the FBS. Findings showed that moving to the FBS had a positive, statistically significant correlation with freshmen applications at the two institutions located in Florida but not at Western Kentucky University.     

COMMUNITY COLLEGES IN THE POST‐13 ERA: INSTITUTIONAL RESPONSES TO TAX LIMITATION

The Jarvis‐Gann amendment to the California constitution cut property taxes by almost 60%. The state's community‐college system, the largest and among the oldest in the country, depends heavily on property taxes, and consequently faces a constrained future. This study sought some indication of the responses these constraints would bring. Based on six case studies, in the late summer of 1978, colleges’ major responses appear to have been general cuts across all programs and activities. Where these were insufficient, colleges often cut community‐service activities, eliminated weekend or evening classes, spent excess reserves, or deferred major expenditures for maintenance or compliance with legal obligations. The result, for the present, is roughly the same mix and level of services, although convenience and flexibility have been reduced. The future looks much bleaker: salaries, at first effectively frozen by state law, will have to increase; state support in lieu of property taxes will stabilize or decline; and enrollments will also stabilize or decline. In these circumstances colleges will either have to reduce the services they provide or, as the concluding analysis in this paper suggests, seek legislative permission to begin charging moderate tuition.     

THE HUMANITIES CURRICULUM IN THE COMMUNITY/JUNIOR COLLEGE

The purpose of this study was to examine the status of the humanities curriculum in the nation's community and junior colleges. Data on course offerings and enrollments in humanities’ courses (e.g., foreign languages, history, literature, philosophy) were obtained in spring 1975 and spring 1977 from a representative national sample of 178 two‐year colleges. Among the findings reported were: (1) during the same time period that two‐year colleges experienced a modest enrollment increase (7.4%), enrollments in 7 of the 12 humanities areas studied actually decreased; and (2) the humanities courses offered at most two‐year colleges were extremely limited both within and across subject areas. Recommendations on how humanities departments can increase their course enrollments are offered.     

THE PARADOX OF DEMOCRATIC EDUCATION: THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

This article begins by tracing the history of higher education in the United States from its origins in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the seventeenth century in private, elite, church‐related institutions to the large‐scale mass higher education situation of today in which well over half the total enrollment is in public secular institutions. The author feels that the State and the Federal governments overly favoured the public sector during the period of massive expansion which began in the 1950's. More importantly, he is very much concerned about the decline in academic standards which set in once total enrollments exceeded 15% of the available college‐age cohorts. The process of decline continues, he argues, as public demand for equal access to higher education has led to equally strident demands for equal results. As results cannot in fact be made equal, given differences in the human condition, the solution to the dilemma has been the adulteration of certification which has as its result the undermining of an essential base of democracy, an educated citizenry.     

两种“自主招生”改革之剖析

实行部分高校面向考生自主招生,开放式招生,是我国高校招生改革的一大突破,为今后各校自主招生或若干院校联合招生探索了一条新路。赞成教育部在部分学校试行的自主招生制度,但不赞成对学生进行层层考试;实行保送生制度,对选拔有专长特长的优秀学生具有积极意义,但应认真总结经验,努力克服不足之处,逐步探索一种符合我国国情的科学的保送制度。     

中美高校人才培养质量成本的分层比较——试论“后大众化”时代教育财政理念的变革原点

从"质量发生"的视角来看,与高校人才培养质量紧密相关的"教学支出"、"学生支出"、"教育科研支出"和"学术支持支出"四项成本,被界定为高校人才培养的质量成本。按照"合格质量"、"良好质量"和"一流质量"的人才培养质量基准,对中美近年来的高校人才培养质量成本分层比较发现:与美国高校人才培养质量成本的"层次鲜明"不同,我国高校在人才培养质量成本方面更多体现出"科研至上"、"物质为先"的发展倾向;"后大众化"时代的我国高等教育财政理念和实践需要从"物质"向"人本"的原点转变。