Opportunities for all: Making the case for AASCU institutions

Higher education is never short of challenges, but those of us leading AASCU institutions are finding ourselves with an interesting array of both new and old issues that challenge us to lead effectively. In an era of almost across-the-board declines in state support for our publicly-purposed institutions, we are tasked with providing an obtainable, high-quality education that is accessible and affordable for all, while at the same time aligning ourselves with the shifting economic needs and new opportunities in the states that we so proudly serve. These issues with state budgets are occurring at the same time as—and perhaps in part because of—a new level of diminished public opinion on the ROI of a four-year baccalaureate education.