The Thriving Institution: Supporting Research A project of the PHE Thriving College/University Theoretical Framework Who We Are Performa Higher Education’s (PHE) mission is to help private colleges and universities thrive. As part of our commitment to integrated campus-‐wide solutions, we have developed services in each significant division within the institutional structure: recruitment (admission and financial aid), student success (student support and student affairs), academic affairs, advancement, marketing and market research, strategic planning and assessment, campus design (campus planning, experience planning, and architectural design), and adult education. We integrate our knowledge of each service area into every project ensuring our recommendations are made both to the specific needs identified and within the context of the entire organization. Background In the past 15 years, we have worked with more than 200 private colleges and universities, of all shapes and sizes and in varying stages of their institutional journeys. One of our founding partners, Joanne Soliday, has had the privilege of working personally with more than 150 presidents, gaining insights about leadership and institutional challenges, priorities, successes, and lost opportunities. Collectively, we have developed what we call a Thriving College/University Theoretical Framework, a comprehensive picture of the constructs (and metrics) we believe portray the healthy, private higher education institution. Why we are interested in this topic and this project First of all, we want our clients to thrive, not just survive. We believe in private higher education and its ability to transform individuals (students and the entire campus community). As we watch the ever-‐growing challenges private colleges and universities face, we not only want to equip them to face the future but to continue to help shape the future as well. Secondly, our clients are often looking for a silver bullet to solve their challenges or as a single means to distinguish themselves from their competitors. Our firm preaches the critical role of a comprehensive approach to long-‐term health and this framework helps us validate that philosophy and prioritize recommendations for private colleges and universities. Finally, our services and recommendations are based on the expertise of our team members and affiliates, the findings of publicly available research, and the results of our firm’s success. Our theoretical framework provides the structure for future research by our team and selected affiliate specialists that should position us as a research knowledge center for private higher education. What we have done thus far We began with a case-‐study approach as the first step in confirming our theoretical framework. To select the first institutions to use as case studies, we chose approximately 20 variables generally agreed-‐upon as indicators of institutional health and publicly available through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), College Board (CB), and Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (The Carnegie Foundation). 940 Golf House Road W, Suite 200 Whitsett, NC 27377 (336) 585-1044
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These included metrics such as the percentage of change over a three-‐year span in enrollment, fall-‐to-‐fall first-‐time full-‐time retention rates, four-‐ and six-‐year graduation rates, revenue and return on investments, etc. Next, we ran more than 200 private colleges and universities in our niche (we consider our niche of colleges and universities to include those with enrollments of full-‐time equivalencies between 1,500 and 3,500) through this filter to produce scores and eventual rankings. As we reviewed the top 25 institutions, we selected 10 institutions that had presidents with whom we might have a connection or who would already be familiar with our firm and team. We extended invitations to these presidents, explaining the project and seeking their permission to use their institution in this first phase of research. Thus far, we have completed Phase 1 with four of the 10 institutions: • Ripon College (Ripon, WI) o David Joyce, Ph.D., President at Ripon at the time of the start of the project • St. Norbert College (DePere, WI) o Thomas Kunkel, President • Maryville University (St. Louis, MO) o Mark Lombardi, Ph.D., President • Messiah College (Grantham, PA) o Kim Phipps, Ph.D., President We have completed individual interviews with each president and members of his/her cabinet. We have completed an initial analysis of the transcriptions, which has informed the most recent version of the framework and provided a rich source of anecdotal examples and possible eventual construct measures. We will be speaking about this early collaborative work at the January 2012 CIC Presidents’ Conference using a panel discussion format with our interviewed presidents. The next steps in this first phase of research The next step in Phase 1 is to collect feedback from the faculty and staff at each of the four institutions. This online survey will launch early in 2012 and provide an opportunity for the campus community to share their perceptions of and experiences with the components of a thriving campus. The survey items have been developed from the synthesized findings of the presidential and cabinet interviews completed thus far. In late spring 2012, PHE will produce a white paper detailing the findings from this initial phase of the project, including the analysis of the qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (surveys) data. We plan to complete a minimum of 6 additional case studies in a similar fashion during 2012, focusing on specific components of the framework. Additionally PHE will be hosting a conference for the leadership of the 10 selected institutions in the summer of 2012.
What lies ahead Though in the early stages of this research, our initial work is providing validation for the constructs and the overall concept of this framework. The next phase of our work will entail exploring and confirming the most useful metrics for each construct and the development of an agenda for original research here at PHE. Additionally, Joanne Soliday (Founding Partner / Owner) will be publishing her book in late spring of 2012. Joanne’s book will be a reflection on her experiences with presidents and cabinets as they dealt with many of these same constructs. This workbook-‐style publication will provide leadership teams a guide for self-‐reflection and assessment. For more information about this project, please contact Joretta Nelson, Ph.D., (Vice President / Owner), at jnelson@performahe.com. References Birnbaum, R. (1988). How colleges work: The cybernetics of academic organization and leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-‐Bass Publishers. Bowen, W.G., Chingos, M.M., & McPherson, M.S. (2009). Crossing the finish line: Completing college at America’s public universities. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Bok, D. (2003). Universities in the marketplace: The commercialization of higher education. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Christensen, C.M. & Eyring, H.J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-‐Bass Publishers. Creswell, J.W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Dickeson, R.C. (1999). Prioritizing academic programs and services: Reallocating resources to achieve strategic balance. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-‐Bass Publishers. Higbee, J.L., Lundell, D.B., & Arendale, D.R. (2005). The General College vision: Integrating intellectual growth, multicultural perspectives, and student development. J.L. Higbee, D.B. Lundell, & D.R. Arendale, (Eds.). Minneapolis, MN: Regents of the University of Minnesota. Kenney, D.R., Dumont, R., & Kenney, G. (2005). Mission and place: Strengthening learning and community through campus design. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. Kuh, G.D., Kinzie, J., Schuh, J.H., & Whitt, E.J. (2005). Student success in college: Creating conditions that matter. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-‐Bass Publishers. Reuben, J. A. (1996). The making of the modern university: Intellectual transformation and the marginalization of morality. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press. Tierney, W.G. (1998). The responsive university: Restructuring for high performance. W.G. Tierney, (Ed.). Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press.