A ‘Playbook For Trustees’ Highlights Innovative Practices for Campus Change Initiatives

A GUIDE FOR TRUSTEES: Eighty-nine percent of Americans think higher education must change in order to meet the needs of today’s students, according to a study by the Lumina Foundation. To encourage more colleges to take on major (and often daunting) change initiatives, the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) today released its second guide geared towards the university leaders who head up these efforts.

The report offers examples from different universities, including Arizona State University, University of Colorado and Purdue University, colleges referred to as “Blueprints of Reform.” With each campus, the guide details efforts around affordability and administrative changes all targeting “improved student outcomes and efficiency without compromising academic quality and student options,” a press announcement reads.

In addition to the individual school profiles, the guide also directs trustees to inter-campus programs like the University Innovation Alliance—a band of 11 universities who share data and ideas to improve student success.

Armand Alacbay, ACTA’s vice president of trustee and legislative affairs, calls the guide “a playbook for trustees.” “Higher education’s traditional business model is increasingly unsustainable, so the need for engaged trusteeship is at an all-time high,” Alacbay said in a prepared statement. “Boards can play a significant role in improving institutional strategy and efficiency without compromising academic quality or raising tuition.”