Informing the Future: A Plan for Higher Education for the Eighties.

Overview & Synopsis

Major issues that will affect Texas higher education in the next decade are addressed. Data and information about the higher education system are presented, and an attempt is made to determine the impact of trends and issues upon colleges and universities. Concepts and perspectives on the appropriate response by higher education and planning approaches at the state and institutional level are considered. Projections for the 1980s are made about the following conditions: inflation, impact of energy costs on higher education, energy resources, taxpayer resistance, water resources, and the Texas economy. The following new developments are addressed: enrollment in Texas colleges and universities; the funding issues pertaining to costs, formulas, and reallocations; accountability, management effectiveness, and tighter governmental control; instructional television; construction slowdown; and collective bargaining. Issues of ongoing concern include: leadership, tenure, faculty salaries, research, college curricula for the 21st century, articulation, continuing education, Blacks and Hispanics in Texas public higher education, and postsecondary education and occupational demand. The situation in the public sector, fields of instruction, the community colleges, education for the health professions, private higher education, student financial aid in the 1980s, and the governance structure of the state higher education system are addressed. Recommendations are offered to the legislature and to colleges and universities, and priorities for the coordinating board are listed. (SW)