In Higher Education, Teach-Outs and Growing Academic Programs Can Be Two Sides of the Same Coin

Managing Principal and President, Brian Mitchell, recently published an article in RealClear Education which describes the difficult set of circumstances many institutions of higher education currently face. “Many institutions are tuition-dependent, lack endowment drawdowns of any scale, and offer financial aid discounts that now average 56%,” says Mitchell.

While some institutions plan to weather the storm by cutting programs and potentially closing or merging their operations, others are encouraged by these macro trends and have created or modified programs and majors to attract prospective students and meet local and regional employment needs. You can read the full article on RealClear Education. 

“This tsunami of confusing and potentially catastrophic trends affecting American higher education presents a dilemma for colleges and universities, whether public or private. On the one hand, many of these institutions seek to weather the storm by cutting programs and potentially closing or merging their operations. On the other, these same trends encourage colleges to create or modify programs and majors to attract prospective students and meet local and regional employment needs. While Fitch Ratings concludes that further college closings and consolidations seem ‘inevitable,’ institutions must think strategically over the longer term to create new programs, approaches and initiatives that meet their organizational and strategic goals. What is the logical path for faculty, staff and trustees to follow?”