State Policy Leadership in Higher Education: Six Case Studies

Overview & Synopsis

This report provides six mini-case studies of higher education policy reforms enacted in other states, exploring the important role that state policy leadership played in developing, promoting, and implementing these policies aimed at improving higher education outcomes, and discussing the relevance of each reform effort for California. This report follows two reports: an update of California higher education performance, "Average Won't Do," and "A New Vision for California Higher Education," an effort to engage stakeholders around a vision more suited to today's students and economic conditions than the 1960 Master Plan. Together, the reports underscore the urgency of efforts to improve leadership and policy for higher education in California, and offer ideas for how this might be accomplished. One reform is highlighted in each of the following states: (1) Colorado; (2) Indiana; (3) Maryland; (4) Oregon; (5) Tennessee; and (6) Texas. [For the above-mentioned accompanying reports, "Average Won't Do: Performance Trends in California Higher Education as a Foundation for Action," see ED574485 and "A New Vision for California Higher Education: A Model Public Agenda," see ED574486.]