Marketplace Features

Series Program Segments “Paying for It” Some experts are applying the term “perfect storm” to describe what’s happening to college affordability: tuitions are rising while financial aid is being cut. So, private and public institutions are looking to their students to pick up more of the tab for soaring administrative costs. In the last 2 years, college costs have risen, state budgets have collapsed, and unemployment is climbing while wages have stayed stagnant. Added to this, a shrinking endowment and a booming population of college-aged kids makes this current fiscal crisis in higher education unique. So, will college remain accessible to most that need or want it? Stephen Henn reports on the new challenges of paying for college and how some are saying that this is a crisis moment for college affordability. Monday, May 19, 2003 Related Media: Listen Diary: Laura Boudreau, an attorney living in Torrance Calif., with a one-year-old son, has concerns about her family's ability to afford a college education for her child -- a sentiment that resonates with many American families. Links: www.highereducation.org: The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education (news, reports and analyses of policies affecting higher ed.) www.finaid.org: FinAid calculator to help students figure out how much college will cost www.aascu.org: American Association of State Colleges and Universities www.naicu.edu: National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities www.collegesavings.org: College Savings Plan Network

“Privatization” Faced with deep cuts from state legislatures trying to make ends meet, several flagship institutions are moving toward privatizing to remain competitive with elite private schools for top students, faculty and funding. To maintain their elite statuses, schools like Michigan at Ann Arbor and Wisconsin at Madison -- the jewels in the crown of their respective state university systems -- are trying to wean themselves off of state budgets to gain more control over how they can do business. Ben Philpott reports from Austin, Texas, where the state legislature has tussled over a number of privatization proposals from chancellor of the University of Texas System, Mark Yudof, a man who’s waving the privatization flag for flagship schools around the country. Tuesday, May 20, 2003 Links: www.ncspe.org: National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education www.csmonitor.com: article: “State colleges face calls for radical reform” www.aft.org: American Federation of Teachers page on privatization www.gse.buffalo.edu: article: “Privatization in and of Higher Education in the U.S.” www.utsystem.edu: Speeches, articles, and presentations by Mark Yudof

“The Haves and Have-Nots” Higher education was not immune to the “irrational exuberance” of the late ‘90s. Like their counterparts in other business sectors, administrators at America’s colleges and universities are finding their current fortunes largely determined by how they invested and managed their money during the boom times. Some schools locked themselves into long-term capital investments based on projections of continued dramatic growth in their endowments. Others dipped too deeply into their endowments to cover operating costs, under the same presumption. Meanwhile, many schools that have started rich stayed rich -- putting the Harvards and Yales of the world at a level even further apart from their competitors. Reporter Bill Drummond examines the tough lessons learned by some schools and the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots. Wednesday, May 21, 2003 Links: www.infoplease.com: College and University Endowments, 2002 www.usnews.com: U.S. News And World Report's "America's Best Colleges 2003" www.gazettenet.com article: "College endowments tumble" www.case.org: Understanding College and University Endowments, from Council for Advancement and Support of Education

“The Trouble with Tenure” The professor’s profession is changing. When higher education falls on hard times, cash-strapped colleges cut corners, often at the cost of faculty job security. Recent years have seen an erosion in tenure: schools are saving money using part-timers, some lure faculty with lucrative, but short-term, contracts, and states place limits on the number of tenured positions. Now, as states struggle to cover big budget deficits, the system of tenure is at a tipping point. In a time when few jobs and fewer pensions seem safe in the American economy, does a system of guaranteed employment even make sense? Sarah Gardner reports from Lincoln, Nebraska, on that state’s attempt to cut budgets by cutting tenured faculty, and how professors, nationwide, face uncertain futures. Thursday, May 22, 2003 Related Media: Reporter's Notebook Links: www.nea.org: National Education Association page on tenure www.aaup.org: American Association of University Professors www.pbs.org: PBS NewsHour segment "Teachers Without Tenure" www.bls.gov: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics "Employee Tenure" page clhe.org: Tenure legislation and regulations

Series Producer Nate DiMeo Surveys the State of Higher Education We've been hearing some sobering stories about the state of higher education in this down economy. The producer of our series, "The Ivory Tower in the Real World." is Nate DiMeo, and he points out a truism about the economics of higher education. Friday, May 23, 2003

"The Innovators" While institutions of higher learning struggle to remain affordable and maintain services, many small private colleges are thriving. While some private colleges are raising tuition to keep them in the black as costs rise, a number of independent schools are coming up with innovative discounts and incentives to help them compete for students and make ends meet. Some, like Bethany College in West Virginia, are reducing tuition. Others, like The University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, promise that students will graduate in four years -- or the fifth year is free. Reporter Aileen Leblanc visits three Ohio colleges where enrollment and overall quality are on the rise, thanks to new competitive incentives. Tuesday, May 27, 2003 Links: www.naicu.edu: "Examples of Campus Innovation" National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities Web site fates.cns.muskingum.edu: Muskingum College www.urbana.edu: Urbana University www.antioch.edu: Antioch University www.lindenwood.edu: Lindenwood University