For-Profit Universities, the Global University and the Inauguration of President C.L. Max Nikias

This past week has been an exciting week for me to be at USC.  I was privileged to attend three events this week that gave me a glimpse into the future of higher education.  On Wednesday afternoon, I attended “The Rise of For-Profit Colleges and Universities” with Dr. Gib Hentschke.  Dr. Hentschke lectured and held a discussion about the for-profit sector of higher education.  These colleges and universities have been absorbing most of the growth of the higher education field.  These institutions have been able to take advantage of the budget and economic constraints of the public not-for-profit sector and capture a large portion of the market. 

On Wednesday evening, I attended the “Global University” panel discussion. It was interesting to hear views of professionals about the global university and the future of higher education around the world.  I have been in many meetings where the global initiatives of USC have been discussed.  USC wants to have a global presence and been seen as a global university.  In my job, I see SPPD striving to offer global programs to make SPPD and USC more attractive.  This year, I planned an international student welcome for 60 new master’s students at SPPD.  Currently, the associate dean of student affairs at SPPD is planning her Asia recruitment trip.  Also, at SPPD and at other schools at USC, we are beginning to see more online degrees and certificates take off. 

On Friday, I attended the Inauguration of President C.L. Max Nikias.  At this grand event, President Nikias discussed the direction that he wants to take the university.  He said, “As our world is shifting away from an Atlantic to a Pacific century, USC is better positioned than anyone else to lead this age.”  He quickly wants to position USC as a premier global university.  It is an exciting time to be at USC; I will be able to be a part of USC as we position our institution as a world leader in the higher education.

My thoughts on HBCUs

So I have to be honest and let you know that before these past 2 weeks, I believed that HBCUs provided "inferior" education compared to PWIs.  After doing my second writing assignment about the history and the future of HBCUs, I was glad to find that I was wrong.  HBCUs have trained and educated a vast number of the nation's Black business leaders, educators, doctors, and political leaders.  However, HBCUs have a reputation in the higher education community, and more sadly in the Black community, as a system of higher education for those that are underprepared or what a "cultural" experience in college.
I learned so much this past week about HBCUs and the education of Blacks. I researched the origins of HBCUs and milestones in the path of higher education for Blacks. Although I am grateful for the Brown ruling and the Higher Education Act of 1965, I am sadden that these event led to the decline of students enrolled at HBCUs.  HBCUs have two major obstacles: underfunding and unprepared students.  Even with underfunding and underprepared students, these schools have graduation rates comparable to those of PWIs. 
Although I am still passionate about  community college students, I hope to use this insight and knowledge to broaden the opportunities of the transfer students that I will support.

Engagement and Involvement

This past week in class we discussed student engagement.  I am particularly interested in engagement of students at community colleges and then as they transfer to a 4-year college or university.  While working at a community college, I saw the lack of student involvement outside of the classroom.  I worked in the Student Development and College Activities Office as a Student Events Assistant.  I planned and facilitated events on-campus for students.  At a community college of nearly 15,000 students, our highest attendance for events was 300 and only when there was free food.  This broke my heart.  My students and I spent so much time planning these events to help students learn outside of the classroom.  I knew then that engagement and involvement was important, but I did not realize how important it truly is. 
Although I worked at a community college in 2008-2009, I still keep in touch with some of my former students.  Many of these students have transferred and are still disengaged in class and uninvolved in campus activities.  Subsequently, many of these students are not excelling and/or want to return home.
I hope to work at a community college and promote engagement and involvement.  With my new knowledge, I hope to be able to host workshops on how to engage in class and how to develop student-faculty relationships.

Community Colleges

During our class discussion on Wednesday, we discussed why community colleges began. There were many social forces that drove the creation of these schools, including education as a social elevator. Because more students were graduating from high school and the colleges and universities could not take on the influx of these students so there was a need for more educational institutions.  Also, everyone could not leave home to go to school so as the highway system developed, more community colleges were established.  Also, community colleges were to be the institutions for vocational training.

We discussed an article about a community college that added a cosmetology associate's degree to their curriculum. This is very interesting to me because I hope to work at a community college. When I worked at a community college in 2008, I learned that many students wanted vocational training, but felt the market demanded further education and certification.  This program combined both vocational training and an associate's degree.  As the economy and market continue to change, a college education is a necessity to maintain middle class status. Hopefully, more colleges will begin to realize the direction the market is headed and further their vocational training.

Peer Review

On Wednesday, the class participated in peer review of our first Issue Paper.  At first, I was a bit nervous about someone reading my paper.  As an business administration undergraduate, little of my work was critiqued by my peers.  However, the peer review process was helpful to me.  This process helped me better my paper and hear what others thought about my topic.  I also gained insight into the interests of a classmate.  Afterwards, my peer reviewer and I had a conversation about her topic and I hope that I was able to assist her in improving her paper.  This process will continue to be important as I advance in my education.  If I pursue a Ph.D., my research will undergo the scrutiny of my peers, my institution, as well as the entire higher education community.

Public Good vs. Private Good

       In class on Wednesday, the class was asked to list who/what benefits from higher education.  The class listed several individuals, entities and groups that benefit from higher education.  The student, alumni, faculty and staff all benefit from institutions of higher education.  The local neighborhood residents and businesses, as well as the city, state, and federal government receive benefits of higher education. Furthermore, society and the environment receive benefits of higher education.  With all that receive the benefits of higher education, is higher education a public or private good?
      As a business major, I learned a lot about public and private goods.  A public goods are "goods or services that can be used by any one person without affecting the supply to all other people, and for which it is impractical to charge individually ("Public goods", n.d.)". There are very few truly pure public goods.  Although I believe that knowledge is a public good, I do not believe that a formal higher education is a public good.  No matter how much knowledge I obtain, the supply of knowledge is unchanged.  In regards to a formal higher education, if someone is admitted to a university, the supply or available seats to others has decreased.   In addition, I can gain knowledge freely.  A formal higher education is not free and most institutions charge individually.  Although some may argue that you can attend school for free, students have to find ways to pay their tuition and/or fees.  On the other hand, I believe that there are aspects of institutions of higher education that are manifested as public goods, including resources and school pride. Because we live in a capitalist society, many "public" institutions still charge a premium or fee to access.

Public goods.  (n.d.)  In MSN Encarta.  Retrieved from
      http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_561547914/public_goods.html

Bibliography

Rudolph, F. (1990). The American college and university: A history. Athens,
       GA: The University of Georgia Press.