Last summer, the National Education Association (NEA) developed a New Business Item to explore retrenchment: "The NEA shall make a statistical study on the effect of significant faculty retrenchment at community colleges on future faculty cuts" (NBI 78, 2022). ASA Research (ASA) conducted exploratory research in an attempt to identify…

When college officials across the country talk about their final tally of Fall 2012 enrollment, the discussions produce assessments that are all over the map. Some institutions, like Hampton University, are pleased to see their enrollment declining. Others, like Florida A&M University, are wondering how they are going to make up for revenue…

Due to economic factors, many institutions of higher education may be forced to reduce faculty positions. The procedures used by Emporia State University (Kansas) can be used as a model for colleges needing to pursue various methods of retrenchment. (JN)

Preliminary results of a three-year study of fifteen school districts indicate that fiscal strain results from both "intended" and "unintended" factors. The authors construct a model of fiscal strain that combines budget constraints with school district decision-makers' preference functions and indifference curves. Using this model and 1976 and…

Colleges and universities have survived a decade of financial exigency because of the resilience they developed. The primary problem to be confronted in the 1980s is still inflation, not declining enrollment, but inflation in the next ten years will not be as bad as recently. References and other resources on response to financial exigency are…

A study of 25 South Dakota school districts found that combining the superintendency with either the elementary or the secondary principalship was not an ideal arrangement. For the district and teachers, the most consistent disadvantages relate to inadequate instructional leadership. For the superintendents, the greatest disadvantage is sacrifice…

The three parts of this paper present a review of how the states provide state aid formula adjustments for enrollment decline, findings of a survey of New Mexico superintendents regarding revision of the state's formula, and the implications of formula revision for the goals of school finance reform. First, it is noted that there is a trend toward…

A survey by the Los Angeles Times indicated that only 18% of the 64% of the Californians who voted for Proposition 13 did so with the hope that expenditures for education would be reduced. However, because financial support for both kindergarten through twelfth grades and community colleges have come largely from local sources, these two segments…

The financial plight of private colleges and universities in the face of inflation and declining enrollments is examined, with emphasis on serious problems at specific institutions. The likelihood of many closings is addressed, and innovative solutions to problems of student financial aid and fund raising are described. (LBH)

Finding themselves suddenly in a highly competitive business, college and university managers must develop novel strategies. Considered are ways in which they can avert financial ruin while preserving the images of their institutions. Available from: Peat, Marwick, Mitchell and Co., 345 Park Ave., New York, NY 10022. (Author/LBH)

In times of declining enrollments and rising costs, small colleges suffer more than larger institutions. Managerial ingenuity, backed by budgetary discipline, can keep them solvent. For journal availability see HE 509 330. (Author/LBH)

In this introductory article to a theme issue, the author discusses the impact of budget cuts, shrinking enrollment, the teacher's declining public image, and the fragmentation of the music industry and the music education field. On the positive side he describes two cases where community pressure prevented music program cuts. (SJL)

The relationships within the Pennsylvania postsecondary education system are examined with a focus on planning for resource and enrollment decline, the relationship between private colleges and state government, and the state-level structure for enrollment and resource decision making. (MLW)

An estimate of departmental cost functions in seven departments at 31 private liberal arts colleges is given. Estimates indicate that departmental costs are relatively inelastic, indicating that financial problems will be compounded in an era of enrollment decline. (Author/MSE)

Issues concerning the management of colleges and universities are considered in a roundtable discussion. It is suggested that higher education may be at a decisive juncture with respect to demographics, finances, institutional structure, and the political context. Attention is directed to the decline in the number of 18- to 22-year-olds and the…