Facilities maintenance is seen as the most important item on the agenda of education in the 1980s. Definite action has been taken to identify deferred maintenance needs of several state systems and private colleges. Identifying and defining the problem is discussed along with comprehensive facilities management and survey guidelines. (MLW)

The issue of whether institutions of higher education should cost account space and physical plant operating and maintenance expenses to their academic programs is examined. Space costing is cited as a philosophical base for cost accounting space, operating, and maintenance expenses to the individual academic unit of an institution. (Author/MLW)

This article focuses on the mastery over the microscopic information processes embodied in devices such as integrated circuits and microcomputers and its effects on society and competition between the computer and telecommunications industries. (Author/SA)

Multicampus systems should proceed carefully in the process of academic program review, with an eye toward asking and answering questions most likely to cause institutions to confront the more fundamental questions of purpose and coherence. (Author/MSE)

Matched Illinois school districts, with and without teacher collective bargaining, were compared on expenditures in 13 budget categories to determine if collective bargaining is related to decreased nonteacher program expenditures. Results suggested that bargaining has led to significantly higher expenditures in both teacher salaries and other…

Levitan (Chairman of the National Commission on Employment and Unemployment Statistics) and Belous question the usefulness and accuracy of current methods of compiling unemployment statistics. Better measurements of labor market performance are crucial because of the ways such data are used to allocate funds and to form policies for combatting…

It is suggested that the lack of funds made available to higher education researchers has contributed to the dearth of postsecondary education research. Improved communication between researchers, changes in the administration of federal support, and increased attention to fundamental research questions are urged. (SF)

The perception that a college has an excellent academic program is seen as a judgment about the whole college, not just about a few departments. To maintain this judgment, the administrator of a small college must exercise balance in allocation of resources to departments and academic support areas. (Author/MLW)

National and state programs that identify and incorporate the role of pharmacists into major health care plans are discussed. Local planning efforts and the development of databases for health care planning are also examined. (SF)

Joseph F. Kauffman, W. Todd Furniss, and Jay L. Chronister review two recently published works that focus on important trends threatening the survival of colleges over the next decade. Fiscal, enrollment, reduction, reallocation, and retrenchment problems are discussed. (SF)

Guidelines are offered for setting priorities on neglected maintenance deficiencies: breaking down the aspects of buildings into various categories, and weightings within these categories; conducting a campus audit; and convincing the administration that the maintenance work recommended is vital to the institution's continued operation.…

Institutional administrators and research specialists must help improve and implement accountability measures if institutions are to retain academic autonomy. Current trends point to increased pressure for public accountability of higher education in the future. (MLW)

A statement of the priorities and purposes of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry to provide a basis for decision making in allocating its funds and resources is provided. Priorities inclue lobbying, maximizing external visibility, identification of funding sources, profession planning, central repository, and internal information…

The dilemma of providing for continued development of new academic programs in the context of severe budgetary constraints is examined. Two curricular planning strategies that provide for academic growth with minimum resource proliferation are detailed--development of umbrella academic programs and creation of curricular aggregates. (AF)

The most dramatic impact of Proposition 13 on California school districts was that the state, in follow-up actions, reduced the number of matters that could be decided locally. (Author/MLF)