| "Any committee is only as good as the most | | | | following as a state of higher education: (a) diminishing |
| knowledgeable, determined and vigorous person on it. | | | | financial support, (b) mandating to serve adult learners |
| There must be somebody who provides the flame." | | | | and first-generation college students, (c) needing to |
| Lady Bird Johnson | | | | balance applied and liberal arts curricula, and (d) the |
| Technology and cultural influences continue to change | | | | subsequent necessity of maintaining and evolving |
| our society. However, traditional universities have | | | | institutional mission. According to Lyon, Kysilka, and |
| ignored cultural trends. According to Clayton, an | | | | Pawlas, authors of The Adjunct Professor's Guide to |
| educational expert, the 21 century needs students who | | | | Success, students want more than the traditional |
| possess good communication skills, critical thinking, | | | | academic institution is willing to give. |
| applied knowledge, intellectual depth, ethics, and cultural | | | | As savvy customers, students are weighing their |
| understanding. Many organizational changes in | | | | options. They don't need to depend on the local |
| universities are conducted from a "top-down" manner. | | | | universities to educate them. Therefore, the |
| Nadler and Tushman, author of Competing by Design, | | | | emergence of customer-focused college curriculums |
| explain that a top-down approach focuses primarily on | | | | has come about via outside sources. |
| the strategic level but is blind to operational problems in | | | | References: |
| organizations. | | | | Berg, G. (2005). Lessons from the Edges. San |
| Therefore, I hypothesize that more knowledgeable | | | | Francisco: American Council on Education Praeger. |
| students and a demanding market are forcing | | | | Clayton, M. (2002). New models for higher education. |
| educational changes. Let's analyze closer. The | | | | The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved May 5, 2006, |
| quickening pace of technology, global competition, and | | | | from |
| educational innovations has caused students to view | | | | Lyon, R., Kysilka, M. & Pawlas, G. (1999). The |
| themselves as customers. Many institutions continue to | | | | Adjunct Professor's Guide to Success: Surviving and |
| ignore working students; however, the current | | | | Thriving in the College Classroom. Needham Heights, |
| undergraduate markup is 73 percent of nontraditional | | | | MA: Allyn and Bacon. |
| students. Also, the demographic changes of more | | | | Nadler, D. & Tushman, M. (1997). Competing by |
| women, minorities, and low income students have | | | | Design. New York: Oxford University Press. |
| created social pressure on traditional institutions. | | | | © 2006 by Daryl D. |
| Berg, author of Lessons from the Edges, cites the | | | | |