This is indeed a period of change for colleges and universities.

Addressing these changes will require the participation of the whole school in a systematic and positive direction. It requires a change in strategies, tactics, and actions linked to a model. This system or model must fit the school and is not generic for each school and program.

So what indicates such changes may be coming?

Obama:

The U.S. used to rank first in the percent of young adults with an associate's degree or higher.

•Now, U.S. ranks 12th among three dozen developed nations, according to a recent College Board report. (Obama did not mention Texas figures specifically, but the same report shows that 42 percent of Americans ages 25 to 34 have at least an associate's degree, but only 31 percent of Texans do.)

•The U.S. would need to produce 8 million more degree holders by 2020 to reclaim first place.

http://chronicle.com/article/In-Texas-Speech-Obama-Renews/123861

http://chronicle.com/article/In-Texas-Speech-Obama-Renews/123861

http://chronicle.com/article/In-Texas-Speech-Obama-Renews/123861

States require changes that may support or be in addition to the federal government. This is from Florida, our home state. What about your state.

State: Florida -

State University System Announces 2010 New Florida Initiative's $10 Million In University Awards

Full award details [PDF]

To create a new Florida Economy Based on Knowledge and Innovation

To focus on the STEM programs  ( Science, Technology, engineering, and mathematics)

Parents feel .that the cost of higher education is out of sight. This idea is constantly used by the press along with stories indicating that college may not be worth the cost.

College has been oversold

by ALEX TABARROK on November 2, 2011 at 7:40 am in Books, Data Source, Economics, Education | Permalink

Pasted from <http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2011/11/college-has-been-oversold.html>

Hacker, A. and Dreifus, C. (2011) Higher education: How colleges and universities are wasting our money and failing our children and what we can do about it: New York: Time Books.

Students

Cost is  a key agenda in the current unrest in the United
States. Cost and the role of corporate greed in the way the world worked.

College Graduates Driving Increase in Bankruptcy Filings

College graduates are the fastest-growing group of consumers who have filed for bankruptcy protection in the past five years, according to a new study by a financial nonprofit. More...

The Washington Post with Bloomberg Business

“If we’re going to address the 37 million adults with some college and no degree, we can’t just tweak the existing model,” said Robert W. Mendenhall of Western Governors University, an online nonprofit university. “Mostly in higher education, technology is an add-on cost that doesn’t change the model at all. We need to fundamentally change the faculty role, and use technology to do the teaching.”