Remaking College

Between 1945 and 1990 the United States built the largest and most productive higher education system in world history. Over the last several decades, however, dramatic budget cuts to public academic services and skyrocketing tuition have made college completion more difficult for many. Nevertheless the democratic promise of education and the global competition for educated workers mean ever growing demand. "Remaking College" considers this changing context, arguing that a growing accountability revolution, the push for greater efficiency and productivity, and the explosion of online learning is dramatically changing the character of higher education. Writing from a range of disciplines and professional backgrounds, the contributors each bring a unique perspective to the fate and future of U.S. higher education. By directing their focus on schools which do the lion's share of undergraduate instruction--community colleges, comprehensive public universities, and for-profit institutions--they imagine a future unencumbered by dominant notions of the "traditional" student, linear models of student achievement, and college as a four-year residential experience. The result is a collection rich with new tools for helping people make more informed decisions about college--for themselves, for their children, and for American society as a whole.