Polish legislation concerning higher education since 1990 has focused on increasing institutional autonomy, but brought with it an unrealistic reliance on market mechanisms for positive change. This has resulted in a non-integrated system and inadequate public policy for science and higher education. It is the institutions themselves that have…

Issues of institutional accountability for colleges and universities are examined in the American and European contexts, particularly as market forces gain importance in Europe. Varying forms of accountability (formal, through accreditation; financial; and academic) and two dimensions of accountability (external vs. internal, legal vs. financial)…

In a national survey, public university faculty, presidents, trustees, coordinating boards, and legislators (total n=251) identified where they felt authority effectively rested for five typical university-related decisions and where they believed authority should rest. Although most believed in campus-based decisions, there was some disagreement…

Aspects of Greek universities discussed include: current supply and demand for higher education, locus of decision-making under the new university organization, public finance, the state of academic and financial independence, and current issues of debate, including graduate study, research, and the recognition of private universities by the…

When seeking to maintain autonomy, universities must be aware of three temptations: politicization, through both involvement in external political conflicts and imposing political orthodoxy internally; diversion of faculty energy from teaching and research toward excessive external consulting; and emphasis on commercial activity for its own sake…

Societal issues likely to affect higher and professional education in the near future and how the university can respond are examined. Issues discussed include trends in higher education enrollment, technological advancement, rapidly increasing cultural pluralism in the United States, student aid in a time of retrenchment, and institutional…

Trends in higher education that are pushing it from a principally public enterprise to a largely private one are examined, including the shift away from public financial support and greater internal management problems. An increasing market orientation is predicted, bringing price and demand into equilibrium, fostering privatization, and infusing…

Discusses one example of successful school restructuring by means of an examination of California's Bowling Green Elementary School. Key contributing elements discussed are having a low student-to-teacher ratio; using integrated thematic instruction; developing an efficacy approach; mastering adopted standards; and developing site-based decision…

It is argued that policies decentralizing the governance of educational systems, although appealing in the abstract, tend to be fundamentally ambivalent and in conflict with powerful forces favoring centralization. Tensions surrounding the issue of decentralization are discussed, with emphasis on the relationship between decentralization and…

Key developments affecting higher education worldwide are examined, including post-World War II expansion in the Third World, broadened access to education, autonomy, and accountability. Reforms driven by societal demands, changing patterns of funding and access, and the political role of students. Issues for the near future are discussed.…

Higher education institutions must find a balance between their internal mission and external forces in governance, autonomy, quality vs. quantity in research, curriculum breadth, curiosity-motivated vs. mission-oriented research, excellence vs. equality, and academic freedom vs. ideological conformity. Each institution will resolve these dilemmas…

The author of recommended reforms for public college and university governing boards that had been outlined in an Association of Governing Boards policy paper, responds to criticism of the reform strategies and expands on his suggestions in four areas: the call for larger boards; merit selection of trustees; greater trustee philanthropy; and…

Universities and colleges across the country are faced with growth in the campus population and the loss of surface parking lots for new buildings. The response of many institutions is to build new garages with the assumption that parking demand ratios will remain the same. Such an approach, however, can be extremely expensive--upwards of …

This paper discusses some current problems and challenges of the Finnish AMKs (polytechnic institutions), and whether financial autonomy could contribute to finding solutions for some of these problems. It provides an overview of the current status of financial autonomy of polytechnics in 6 European countries, and finally attempts to find links…

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and their students played a pivotal part in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and early 1960s. Private HBCUs, in particular, provided foot soldiers, intellectual leadership, and safe places to meet and plan civil disobedience. Their economic and political autonomy from the state enabled the…