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• NAC&U and Wagner College Mourn Passing of Thomas Carroll
• Wagner College Wins National Civic Engagement Award
• Quinnipiac University Students Among First in Nation able to Rent Textbooks
• President Thomas A. Kazee's First Day at the University of Evansville
• Six New American Colleges and Universities Named 'Colleges of Distinction'
• Westminster Researches E-portfolios as Assessment Tool
• Moving Forward, Together — Summer Institute Highlights Strength of Consortium
• The Chronicle of Higher Education Coverage of the NAC&U Executive Summit
• Eleven New American Colleges and Universities Sending Students Overseas on Fulbright Grants
• Faculty From New American Colleges and Universities Receive Prestigious Fulbright Awards
• Featured Campus: Valparaiso University — Preparing Students to Lead and Serve
• Promoting Student Success by Reaching Out to Sophomores
  
• Find Experts by Field and Topic at New American Colleges and Universities

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NAC&U and Wagner College Mourn Passing of Thomas Carroll

The Wagner College community and NAC&U CFOs will remember Thomas Carroll for his professional dedication and positive outlook. For the past seven years, Tom was Wagner College’s Vice President for Finance and Administration. Tom also taught several graduate business classes at Wagner, and in 2008 a student poll named him top graduate professor. Read more.

Wagner College Wins National Civic Engagement Award

Wagner College has won the second annual Higher Education Civic Engagement Award, given by the Washington [D.C.] Center for Internships and Academic Seminars. The six winners of this year’s Higher Education Civic Engagement Awards were chosen from among 120 nominees. Read more.

Quinnipiac University Students to be Among First in Nation able to Rent Textbooks

Quinnipiac University students this fall can expect significant savings on textbooks and course materials, thanks to some new cost-cutting strategies launched by the Quinnipiac University Bookstore. Quinnipiac students will be among the first in the country to have the option of renting their textbooks in a program that began on July 19. The initiative, Rent-A-Text, will further the university’s expanding sustainability efforts by recycling books, while saving students 50 percent or more off the price of new materials. Read more.

Six New American Colleges and Universities Named 'Colleges of Distinction'

Belmont University, Ithaca College, Quinnipiac University, Samford University, University of Evansville, and Westminster College have all been selected for the Colleges of Distinction, a Web site and college guide profiling more than 240 of America’s best bets in higher education. Based on the opinions of guidance counselors, educators and admissions professionals, Colleges of Distinction honors colleges that excel in four areas of undergraduate education: student engagement in the educational process, great teaching, vibrant learning communities and successful outcomes. Read more.

Westminster Researches E-portfolios as Assessment Tool

Take a quick quiz: Which is the best way to evaluate student learning: a.) a multiple choice test, b.) an essay, c.) a group project, or d.) a student-developed electronic portfolio? Many educators are working to answer just this question. One such group, the Inter/National Coalition for Electronic Portfolio Research has selected Westminster College to research the impact of e-portfolios on student learning and their effectiveness as a means of educational assessment. Read more.

The Chronicle of Higher Education Coverage of the NAC&U Executive Summit

Alexandra Tilsley, CHE reporter, interviewed 8 NAC&U members during Summer Institute on their discussions to leverage consortium partnerships. Read more.

Eleven New American Colleges and Universities Sending Students Overseas on Fulbright Grants

Nineteen students from members of the New American Colleges and Universities, an organization known for its strong emphasis on global studies, will travel to 13 different countries as part of the prestigious Fulbright Program which emphasizes academic and professional excellence.

Students from the following New American Colleges and Universities have been awarded Fulbright grants: Drake University, Drury University, Elon University, Hamline University, Ithaca College, North Central College, Pacific Lutheran University, The University of Scranton, University of Evansville, University of Redlands, and Valparaiso University. Read more.

Faculty From New American Colleges and Universities Receive Prestigious Fulbright Awards

Faculty from the six following New American Colleges and Universities received Fulbright Awards: Pacific Lutheran University, University of Evansville, Drake University, Samford University, Quinnipiac University, and Elon University. Read more.

The Summer Institute has always afforded NAC&U members with the opportunity to share best practices with like-minded institutions, and this year’s conference was no different in that respect. But in many ways, the 2010 Summer Institute, whose theme was “Sustaining Community, Renewal, and Meaning in our Work,” prompted the 145 attendees to examine what lies ahead for higher education and determine how to best use the tools and opportunities available—whether the consortium’s collective strength, social media, or data on student trends—to remain viable while staying true to what they do best.

Executives discussed leveraging the consortium as a way to stay competitive.

Prior to the official start of the Institute at Wagner College in New York, presidents, provosts/CAOs, CFOs, and vice presidents for Enrollment Management gathered for an Executive Summit to discuss fiscal sustainability and institutional positioning in response to a changing demographic and economic climate. Executives also discussed how to leverage NAC&U to better position both their own institutions and the consortium. Following the Executive Summit, Alexandra Tilsley, reporter at The Chronicle of Higher Education, interviewed eight NAC&U members about the consortium and its plans to increase collaboration.

The official start to Summer Institute kicked off on Wednesday with a luncheon, the first of many delicious meals that showcased Wagner’s gracious hospitality. Following that, Charles Blaish of The Wabash Center at Wabash College gave a presentation on the Center’s national study of 49 institutions that identified practices and conditions that promote liberal education and growth within students. Blaish asserted that it was essential to listen to student feedback if an institution were to be successful at attaining positive outcomes in student retention and student achievement.

Annmarie Dowling-Castronovo, nursing professor at Wagner, discusses sustainable civic engagement.

Throughout the institute there were sessions of concurrent panels. Topics included Educating and Retaining the 21st Century Student, Piloting a K-16 Early College High School, and Literacy across the Curriculum, among others, presented by faculty and administrators from member campuses and guest speakers.

John Lawlor and Lynsey Struthers of The Lawlor Group, specialists in education marketing, discussed social media for colleges and universities. The presentation outlined the reasons why institutions need to be on social media, redefined the four Ps of marketing, and provided a concrete game plan for setting up a presence on popular sites. To conclude the Summer Institute, George Dehne of George Dehne & Associates kept with the forward-looking theme of the conference with his vision of higher education in 20/20, including the changing demographics of students and what colleges and universities need to do to stay competitive.

Natalie Johnson, second from left, of Wagner College with a group from The University of Scranton visiting the Chinese Scholars Garden in Snug Harbor on Staten Island.

From the Institute’s “base” at Wagner College in Staten Island, many conference participants took full advantage of the free ferry ride to Manhattan. Also, NAC&U organized educational expeditions to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, and a tour of Staten Island.

Photos from the Summer Institute are posted on the NAC&U Facebook page.

Next year’s Summer Institute will take place at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. Officials from North Central agreed that their work was cut out for them as Wagner College provided such a memorable experience—the comprehensive, educational program; creative meal planning (authentic hot dog carts at lunchtime!); and sweeping views of the NYC skyline; to name a few highlights. Located just 29 miles west of Chicago, however, North Central is certain to put its own regional flair on next year’s conference.

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Read archived New American Colleges and Universities Featured stories.