Small institutions are in a unique and perhaps necessary position to innovate as the field changes, resources falter, and the needs of the next generation of students and families become apparent and quite different from those supported by our historical structures and service modalities. This article examines the literature surrounding historical…

Preparing pre-service teachers is a crucial element to consider when looking to improve student success. Many teachers are not given sufficient resources and feel unprepared when entering the profession particularly around the topic of reading instruction. This study examined the effectiveness of an undergraduate course, with an embedded community…

This qualitative study examined the informal mentoring relationships between faculty and students at two small, faith-based, liberal arts campuses. Perceptions of both faculty and students' views of informal mentoring were studied. The research questions further explored the factors that encouraged or discouraged faculty-student informal mentoring…

The growth in technology and the global nature of business and work have created new challenges for higher education. Administrators from institutions around the country desire more international study by their faculty and students as well as more visitors and residents to the campus from countries abroad. Are college students prepared for the…

This report presents information to make more visible the advantages of small colleges and to make explicit why small colleges choose to remain small. Nine topics of discussion are as follows: focus on the education of the undergraduate student; providing high quality education to all kinds of students; providing a liberal arts education for a…

Flexibility, diversity, and efficiency can make small colleges "the educational entrepreneurs" of the nation. By using interdisciplinary programs, independent studies, adjunct professors, and some creativity, they can develop exciting and valuable programs that anticipate the needs of society. (MLW)

Aspects of the small liberal arts college's environment that contribute to the intellectual and personal development of faculty as well as students include accessibility, visibility, flexibility, the institution's desire for interdisciplinary inquiry, and a reward system for scholarship. (MSE)

In 1982, Ursinus College instituted a new Freshman Advising Program (FAP), involving: a greatly expanded role for the advisor; postponement of the declaration of major; greater emphasis on student-centered developmental advising; a focus on the transition needs of freshmen; a focus on the problem of false starts and student encounters with…

Research on student development has shown positive effects of institutional smallness on most student outcome variables. However, no clear relationship of ruralness to these outcome measures has been shown. The limited literature on small/rural community colleges includes two areas relevant to student development: college characteristics, which…

The liberal arts college that gives teacher education a high priority in its purpose, that commits itself to the intellectual development of teachers through a humanistic curriculum and that values teaching for its faculty, as well as its prospective teachers, can make a significant contribution to improvement of education. (MLW)

Outlines an effort to increase organizational effectiveness and efficiency of a small college housing department. Attempts to integrate management and education through a reorganization of custodial and maintenance procedures which allow staff members more time for student development programs. (JAC)

The Alverno College faculty reports on its development and use of assessment (rather than testing) to elicit, diagnose, and certify student abilities as part of its outcome-centered approach to liberal education. Assessment is defined as a more complete challenge to both the process and the content of a student's learning, achieving a more…

Chief student personnel administrators for small/rural community colleges were surveyed to compare their student personnel programs to a major student development model, so as to provide for a basis for comparison of small college student personnel programs. A profile of chief personnel administrators of small colleges is described. (RC)

Explores the meaning of dual roles and relationships for counselors in small colleges; examines relevant ethical standards; describes the major risks involved; suggests safeguards to minimize risk; outlines frameworks for ethical decisionmaking; and illustrates the issues with a case example of problems related to multiple roles. (JBJ)

At two women's liberal arts colleges, freshman (n=127, n=140) perceptions of academic advising style were measured. Although students reported developmental advising at both institutions, the mean score at one college was significantly more developmental than at the other. Frequency of contact and an academic planning component were significant…