A Project of the American Council on Education
Funded By The WK. Kellogg Foundation
Project Description
Financial pressures, changing demographics, competing values, and the rapid
rate of change in the world both within and beyond our national borders make
change an imperative for higher education The American Council on Education
(ACE) has launched a project funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to help
colleges and universities not only respond to these external pressures for
change, but also take charge of change.
Who Is Participating
Twenty-six institutions were selected through a national competition from a
pool of 110
applications to work with one another, ACE staff, and a team of consultants
(Senior Liaisons). In selecting participants, ACE sought a diverse group of
institutions that were ready to undertake serious and far-reaching change.
Participating institutions include: Ball State University; Bowie State University; California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Centenary College of Louisiana; The City College of New York; College of DuPage; El Paso Community College District; Kent State University; Knox College; Maricopa County Community College District; Michigan State University; Mills College; Northeastern University; Olivet College; Portland State University; Seton Hall University; State University of New York College at Genesco; Stephen F. Austin State University; University of Arizona; University of Hartford; University of Massachusetts, Boston; University of Minnesota; University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras; University of Wisconsin - La Crosse; Valencia Community College; and Wellesley College. (Universities in bold are paired with SFASU).
What Happens During The Project?
The project encourages institutions to identify and address their own agendas
for change,
focusing on both substantive change themes such as improving teaching and
learning,
internationalizing the campus or redefining curricular priorities, and on
change processes,
including such issues as the role of leadership throughout an institution, the
underlying values and assumptions, and creating a climate of trust and
civility.
The project will:
* Help participating institutions to clarify their agendas for change, to
create processes,
programs, and strategies that facilitate change and to enhance their capacity
to undertake
significant change.
* Provide frameworks and discussion guides to help institution specify their
intended
outcomes and the processes for achieving them.
* Create opportunities for participating institutions to share experiences and
strategies with
other participating institutions through cluster meetings, inter-institutional
visits, and
electronic communications.
* Maintain regular contact with participating institutions through Senior
Liaisons to facilitate
forward movement.
* Assist participating institutions in monitoring their progress towards
achieving their
intended outcomes.
Senior liaison for the project is Mary-Linda Merriam Armacost