Recently there has been a spate of articles in journals as diverse as Dow Jones, The New York Times, and Inside Higher Education which, when boiled down, ask about the fundamental value of a college education and raise the question of how, when we see that value, we will know what we are looking at. continue reading

Last sunday’s New York Times “News of the Week in Review” had an article by Jacques Steinberg entitled “Plan B:Skip College”. He is reporting on a fairly short list of people, including Charles Murray, who are serious about capping postsecondary education opportunity for currently marginalized people — read poor and/or of color. I am always impressed when people who have a privilege, like a college education and degree, argue that those without that privilege really don’t need it. continue reading

I have been the founding president of both a community college and a state university. And in both cases, we (me, my co-workers, and the pioneering students at these schools) were subjected to the public skepticism that comes with making change.

·         It was a “waste of money”.

·         The colleges were “low quality”.

·         The learners were “not qualified to go to school.” 

This was, pure and simple, elitism masquerading as a concern for academic quality and fiscal restraint. But the naysayers were wrong. Today both institutions, and many others like them, are recognized as significant contributors to the social, civic, and economic health of their communities.  

As higher education’s private sector, flooded by hundreds of thousands of unemployed and under-employed Americans, steps up to help meet the President Obama’s educational goals, however, the naysayers are at it again, trying to scare people about the changes that are happening. Consider the recent Frontline story. If the dominant perspective lying behind this story were to prevail, the consequences would include:

·         the re-marginalization of hundreds of thousands American students,

·         the loss of a vital source of trained workers and more engaged citizens,

·         and the elimination of hundreds of thousands of jobs just when we need them the most.

But it won’t happen because, when the accurate story is told, including the contributions and the shortcomings of all higher education, including the private sector, common sense will dictate that we fix the problems and hold on to the successes. That’s the only hope we have of meeting the President’s graduation goals.

I, for one, believe that the “shock and dismay” exhibited by some about debt burdens and graduation rates is purposely slanted in an attempt to gain philosophical advantage in a political fight. Excessive debt and loan defaults are very serious problems. But, consider the following.

1.       The only way to meet President Obama’s goals is to succeed where we are currently failing, with millions of high-risk students.

·         In recessions, unemployed and underemployed people go back to school. So, millions of people have returned to school in the last three years. Most of them are, by definition, high-risk both academically and financially. 

·         At the same time, the President wants to dramatically increase college attainment. But the only way to do that is to reach out to those who have not been successful in college historically, people who are currently marginalized. They are, by definition, high-risk both academically and financially.

·         Conclusion:  the people going back to school in a recessionary environment are the newcomers the President wants us to serve.

2.       Low price public colleges are essential in the educational network, but private sector colleges have a significant contribution to make as well.

·         Public colleges receive public subsidies thus driving down their price to learners. This is a positive social benefit. But because of the recession and other constraints, most public colleges are overflowing with students and turning people away. In California alone it is estimated that more than 150,000 current students in community colleges who are nearing graduation will not get the courses they need to graduate this year.

·          Even in good economic times, the private sector’s nimbleness and service-orientation attract students who choose to pay a higher tuition because of the other services and personal attention they receive.

·         Where are these students, and the others who cannot be admitted to the state universities and community colleges, going to go? Or are we supposed to sit by and watch the “remarginalization” of hundreds of thousands of aspiring learners?

·         Conclusion: There is a huge access problem in the traditional sector.

3.       Private sector colleges are part of the solution.

·         Private sector colleges live by their tuition. Absent the huge state taxpayer subsidies received by traditional schools, they are higher cost to the students. 

·         Private sector colleges are attracting the very people who the president has targeted.

·         The Gates Foundation understands the importance of this role

·         Lumina Foundation understands the importance of this role

·         Many members of the Department of Education understand the importance of this role.

·         Conclusion: private sector colleges have the nimbleness, the quality, and the flexibility to step up and help with this critical national objective.

And that raises the point we should be focusing on. All of higher education – the private sector, community colleges, state colleges and universities, and private non-profit colleges – need to do a better job:

·         Of graduating the students who enroll.

·         Of advising students about the financial and economic consequences of the educational choices they make.

·         Of finding ways to pass more money through to reduced costs to the students, not to our bottom lines.

·         And, for obvious reasons, those of us who enroll the highest numbers of at-risk students - community colleges. Private sector institutions, and state colleges and universities - have the farthest to go.

Tainting the entire private sector with scary stories, however, while implying that the non-profit sector does a better job with the same students, is simply not accurate, by the numbers. This demonization is bad economics, bad education, and encourages an America with less educational and economic opportunity, just when we need more.

Conclusion: We are all in this fight for educational opportunity together. Let’s act that way.

In “Midnight Class Is Latest Sign of Higher Education’s Demand,” the Baltimore Sun reports on community colleges that are offering graveyard-shift classes, including a psychology class - “Midnight Madness” coming this fall from 12-3 a.m. at Anne Arundel Community College in Maryland. It certainly provides access and relieves pressure on crowded community college facilities. There’s nothing wrong with the concept and it creates some buzz. Classes in the middle of the night may be just the ticket for some. But … continue reading

A recent piece in the Los Angeles Times about three-year bachelor’s degree programs caught my eye. I recall once having computed that a law student offered a 24×7 class schedule could do all the work needed for a J.D. degree in a mere 40 days and 40 nights. Actually, it would take closer to a full six weeks. At the end of forty days, a student would be about seven class hours short, and then you’d have to factor in a little time for examinations and a midnight graduation ceremony that last night.

That was a handy factoid to know when I worked for the American Bar Association’s law school accreditation group and needed to talk with students who called to complain about the unreasonable accreditation rules, which were preventing them from taking N units in a particular semester - so they could graduate a bit early, or (more encouragingly) because there was so much to take that term. continue reading

Even as the recession eases, we are confronted by two realities: state budgets that are deeply in the red and a rising demand for higher education. The President says we need more success in higher education to stay economically viable. and learners are voting with their feet, returning to school in record numbers.  If, however, our objective is to open higher education to more qualified and capable people, and to succeed with them, what is the actual impact of the recession and state budget deficits on most students and colleges? continue reading

The stories told in Purple States‘ Take America to College videos are worth a look and listen. I came across them through A New Kind of Student, a piece about a Boston police officer’s quest for a college degree penned Lawrence Harmon in the Boston Globe. These videos reflect the experience of so many nontraditional students who are working hard to learn more and prepare for meaningful careers while balancing the demands of work and family. The recent campaign by my institution, Kaplan University, is inspirational and challenging, I think. So are the Take America to College stories. continue reading

I saw an ugly sight last week: An emerging new exclusion from the opportunity called higher education. This exclusion is the net result of reduced state budgets for community colleges and state colleges and universities, an increasingly expensive and ineffective education model, and the expressed attitudes of some policy, government, and educational professionals. continue reading

I am very pleased that my most recent book, “Harnessing America’s Wasted Talent: A New Ecology of Learning” (Jossey-Bass, Jan, 2010) was published in January. Writing the book has been a journey for me: changing me in the writing and changing the book as a result of the intellectual ferment created. I have come to understand this technological revolution as more  than a set of linked events with a cumulative widespread impact on almost every facet of our lives. Indeed, I now understand it as a new ecology, a new environment for information and intellectual activity which cannot be controlled by existing hierarchical structures, such as universities and governments. continue reading

Yesterday was graduation day at Concord Law School of Kaplan University, my school. Ours is an online law school program. Anyone with continuing skepticism about whether online programs can create community; can be interactive; can be support students’ work; and can be rigorous and academically challenging should attend our ceremony. Or, go to a Kaplan University graduation or similar events conducted by other high-quality providers of online higher education programs. I suspect that your concerns will be laid to rest. What a great day it was! continue reading