Horgan Ò. R. The Changing Role of Public Policy and Governance in American Higher Education
DOI: 10.12958/EPS.4(159).Horgan_T_R
Horgan, Ò. R. MPA (Master's Degree in Public Administration), President and CEO, New Hampshire College and University Council, New Hampshire, USA.
Abstract
The article exposes the need for the development of new public policy initiatives to resolve compelling questions facing American higher education today (calls for establishing a new, alternative system of accreditation; escalating costs of higher education compounded by federal funding increasingly tied to specific workforce demands; the need to redefine the public understanding of affordability, quality, and access; growing public attention to completion rates and gainful employment, etc.). In this regard, the author opines on the changing role of some of the key agents of postsecondary governance and oversight: institutional boards of trustees, accreditors, and state and federal governments.
With institutional governance being redefined in the United States, board members’ engagement into the areas of institutional effectiveness, such as academics and admissions, in ways that historically were reserved to the administration and/or faculty, is expanding. Furthermore, the modern higher education landscape now requires that boards be placed under new levels of public accountability and exercise a more businesslike approach to their responsibilities. These, along with new federal calls for reform of the long-standing national higher education accreditation system to provide pathways for new higher education models, create important pressure points on the public policy agenda.
Key words: higher education, public policy, governance, oversight, regulation, board of trustees, state and federal governments, accreditation.
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