A few months ago, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to visit a college, as part of a team, for a consulting engagement. What struck me about the gig was the entrepreneurial spirit of the institution. It was a special place that needed some value proposition and pricing/financial aid work, as well as some changes in admission and aid best practices, however, the ethos of the institution was one focused on a student success culture with an infrastructure in place.
While not an institution rolling in endowment per FTE, it is one that I feel will sustain because of the willingness of the president and senior administration to think differently and consider new approaches. I think in general; this is the type of thinking that will be necessary for institutions in considering the future of higher education.
So where to begin? I believe it begins with a message from senior leadership that everything is on the table for discussion or investigation. In other words, no sacred cows. This goes for the academy (curricular and tenure) as well as administratively. I floated to the Provost at the institution that given the three legged stool of tenure – teaching, research and service – should student success work as part of faculty member tenure be considered service? While it did not fly at this institution, I did hear from a Provost at another institution, they were taking this on. I also learned from a colleague that one college president added student success to the tenure stool making it four versus three legs. I think this type of entrepreneurial thinking is critical to the future of higher education given the importance of student outcomes.
From a curricular perspective, I recently read an article about marrying the curriculum to student outcomes post-graduation. While much has been written pro and con about colleges changing to be more vocationally driven, it seems to me, this is not an either/or it is an “and” consideration. There has been much researched on the value or not of the liberal arts. Certainly, a liberal arts education can involve the integration of technology. I have a hard time thinking anyone would disagree with the notion that advancing a student’s technical capacity would not assist in having them become better problem solvers in general – a foundation of a liberal arts education. Similarly, I have a hard time thinking anyone would disagree with the notion of advancing the written and verbal communication skills of an engineer. Aren’t the most skilled engineers those who can communicate their technical problem-solving acumen to a broad population of constituents? Integrating technical thinking into the liberal arts just involves a more entrepreneurial approach. Ensuring communication skills are part of a technical degree also involves entrepreneurial thinking.
There also has been much written about the value of interdisciplinary learning. I could not agree more with the benefits of this approach. Those who find common threads across disciplines that allow students to link and marry their interests. This does not come with a great deal of additional institutional cost; it is simply packaging what is in existence in a different way. Take the notion of leadership for example. Within the humanities – in History and English, for example, the study of leaders or leadership literature is a topic. Within the social sciences – in Political Science, the study of political leadership is a topic. Within the sciences – Neuroscience for example, involves the study of what inspires or motivates people. These linkages or intersections between disciplines allow students to develop skill sets that lend to post-graduation outcomes that match their interests. To implement this type of curricular change involves entrepreneurial thinking.
To sum up, ensuring the sustainability of institutions, and higher education in general, involves entrepreneurial thinking leadership. Looking at every facet of an institution and working to find the unique ethos within an institution that allows for the development of a value proposition that lends to greater student demand involves entrepreneurial thinking. This approach will ensure the value proposition is true to the student experience and will positively impact student persistence to graduation, lending to successful student outcomes and satisfied alumni.
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