Historical and philosophical perspectives on college academic programs, current curriculum practices and agendas, and academic program development and implementation are considered in 20 articles in a reader designed for graduate classes in higher education administration. Titles and authors are as follows: "Frames of Reference" (Frederick Rudolph); "Harmony, Chaos, and Consensus: The American College Curriculum" (Douglas Sloan); "Stability and Experiment in the American Undergraduate Curriculum" (Laurence Veysey); "From 'Original Papers in Relation to a Course of Liberal Education'" (The Yale Report of 1828); "From 'Experience and Education'" (John Dewey); "General Education" (Robert Maynard Hutchins); "Components of the Curriculum" (The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching); "Vocationalism in Higher Education: Explanation from Social Theory" (Robert E. Roemer); "The Major or Concentration" (Arthur Levine); "Emerging Curricular Patterns" (Jerry G. Gaff); "Seeking Women's Equity Through Curricular Reform: Faculty Perceptions of an Experimental Project" (Betty Schmitz, Anne S. Williams); "Modifying Course Content to Encourage Critical Awareness" (John Nicols, Zelda F. Gamson); "A Modest Proposal: Reflection on the Future of Undergraduate Reform" (Gerald Grant, David Riesman); "Making Decisions about the Curriculum: From Metaphor to Model" (Clifton F. Conrad, Anne M. Pratt); "The Architectonics of Knowledge" (Philip H. Phenix); "Reforming General Education" (Daniel Bell); "From 'The Modern American College'" (Arthur W. Chickering and Associates);"Political Linkage: The Academic-Innovation Process" (Jack Lindquist); "A Grounded Theory of Academic Change" (C. Conrad); "Five Evaluation Frameworks: Implications for Decision Making in Higher Education" (Don E. Gardner); and "Critical Issues in Program Evaluation" (Richard F. Wilson). (SW)