The political philosophy (from the U.S. Declaration of Independence) that "all men are created equal" succinctly captures the "raison d'etre" and phenomenal successes of American higher education. Today, the deepest commitment to this idea of fair play is affordable access to a higher education that offers the opportunity to cultivate knowledge, envision and pursue a rewarding and better future, and learn to condition the "pursuit of happiness" by a commitment to the common good. And even though higher education is not an entitlement at any level of U.S. government, numerous national reports argue that higher education must continue to be an affordably accessible opportunity for all Americans as the basis for innovation, economic development, and a national competitive edge in the hypercompetitive global knowledge economy. This article talks about external calls for measurable performance improvement and the role that IT plays in accounting for performance. The article examines the voluntary counter-reformation from within higher education and academic leaders stepping up to the challenge. (Contains 10 notes and 2 figures.)