At the beginning of a new year, most people find themselves looking forward and resolving to change their habits to improve their future.
In the final year of my four-plus decades as a university president, I find myself pondering the future of West Virginia University and American higher education generally.
All my experience tells me that higher education is facing an existential moment, and the actions that colleges and universities take today will shape what they become — for good or ill — 10 or 20 years from now.
It is no secret that the past few years have been especially challenging across higher education, with a cascade of economic and social forces buffeting our work.
One of those forces is demographic — the so-called “demographic cliff,” a sharp decline in the college-aged population. U.S. birthrates dropped sharply beginning with the 2008 great recession. For decades, the annual number of births per 1,000 women of child-bearing age ranged from 65-70. After the decline that started in 2008, that number plummeted to 54.4 by 2023, the lowest in our nation’s history.
Past declines in the college-aged population were largely offset by the rising percentage of high school graduates who pursued higher education. Little room remains for further growth in college attendance; in fact, recent trends show more people questioning the value of the four-year degree.
Today, only 36% of the U.S. public expresses “a lot” of confidence in higher education, according to Gallup. And 68% say higher education is moving in the wrong direction.
At a time when resources are so limited, needs are so great, expectations are so high, and threats are so significant, higher education cannot afford to stand still.
Challenges provide us an opportunity for reinvention and reimagination. And while change can be unsettling, we all know that is a necessary part of life’s journey. With a well-defined purpose as their guide, colleges and universities can set their course toward world-changing impact.
Reinvention takes courage.
In 2023, West Virginia University took bold actions to reshape academics to meet student needs drawing some harsh criticism, but our Board of Governors and senior leaders agreed that we owed it to our constituents to improve quality while reducing costs. We made data-informed decisions about academic programs based on student interest, delivery costs and societal need.
Like all public, land-grant universities, our future depends upon building bridges to connect our work with the people we serve.
More than 20 years ago, the Kellogg Commission urged land-grant universities to return to their roots, engaging in reciprocal relationships with communities to solve local problems and prepare students for real-world challenges. As the commission’s original chairman, I believe we have made progress toward truly “engaged institutions,” but many lessons remain unheeded across the higher education landscape.
The insular nature of universities is still preventing many from fulfilling partners’ needs.
Regaining the public’s trust must start with an honest, inclusive, carefully executed series of listening sessions with those outside the university. Universities must make such dialogue an ongoing priority.
Although very important to a university, most nonacademics do not care about research volume, or its number of national prize-winning faculty, or the recognitions bestowed by national higher education organizations.
With the exception of prospective students and their parents, they may not care how many majors or study abroad opportunities exist. And they almost certainly do not care which recreation center has the highest climbing wall or which dining halls serve the most haute cuisine.
The average community member and their representatives and leaders want to know if their local university is accessible and affordable; if it offers degree programs that can lead to meaningful employment; if it provides support structures and mechanisms to ensure student success; if it creates programming of value to the community; if it brings affordable arts and athletics offerings to the community; if it can meet the needs of students with varying degree objectives, schedules and timelines; and if it invests in community and infrastructure improvements. These are real things that make real differences in the lives of real people.
If we commit to evolving our institutions to meet the public’s changing needs, we can rebuild public confidence and trust.
It is always tempting to embrace inertia rather than risking criticism. Our university has had the courage to face detractors. Only institutions who take similar risks will position themselves for future success.
A can-do spirit has always helped this nation thrive; and that spirit must enliven America’s crown jewels, our colleges and universities.
We must pioneer progress. We must nurture hope and resiliency and prosperity.
And we must renew the covenant between higher education and the people who need us.