bodner089

Today's (May 31, 2012) daily update from Inside Higher Ed has a lead article on branch campuses. There are interesting points in the article, but there also is the suggestion that many universities are moving away from offering programs at branch campuses or are focusing their programs at the graduate level. There are a few comments after the article, including one from me. Note that the title of the article suggests "pruning," not necessarily cutting down the entire tree. You can access the article at: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/05/31/shift-branch-campuses-reflects-changes-educational-delivery-and-demand. You may have to copy and paste the address. As indicated in my comment, my own impression is that many branch campuses are growing, and at least some presidents expect to see greater enrollment growth at branch campuses than at their main campuses. In my opinion, branches need to be aggressive about shifting toward hybrid delivery of their programs, a...

I’ve been asked to explain more about coaching and how it works, so here goes: Coaches serve clients as a “thought partner” or “trusted adviser,” by supporting them in an exploration of goals and options for achieving those goals. When I coach, I like to concentrate on identifying both individual strengths and strengths in the organization or leadership team, where appropriate. I encourage people to think about times they felt especially energized and committed to their work and what it was about them or the situation that contributed to success, so that they can consider those experiences in new contexts. I’ve found that the coaching process not only leads to identifying options and clarifying ideas, but it releases a lot of confident energy. Sometimes coaching clients also want to use me as more of a consultant, especially with regard to resolving a specific issue at work. I’m generally aware of which role I’m in, but I do try to be careful about doing too much “consulting,” when...

When I take tests or inventories, designed to identify individual strengths, a top strength always is that I am a “learner.” I do love learning new things, and perhaps as a result, I have very broad interests and (sometimes) a short attention span for the routine. My good fortune to work in academia allowed me to follow lots of different paths and to choose a “road less traveled,” when it suited me. In that context, I feel especially blessed to pursue an encore career, as a consultant, coach, and speaker. Getting to meet people from around the country, and occasionally from other parts of the world, is terrific. I enjoy visiting new places and learning the unique history of various institutions. After more than 36 years of association with branch campuses and, more broadly, programs for adult learners, I’ve had remarkable experiences and opportunities to learn. I suppose it is natural that a learner would enjoy sharing what he’s learned, and in the sense that I am still a teacher,...

As always, the recent meeting of the National Association of Branch Campus Administrators (NABCA) was well worth attending. We met in Orlando, hosted by Central Florida University, from April 11-14. This was the 15th annual conference, which I believe includes the first several years, when we met as the Western Association. Next year’s conference will be hosted by Brookdale Community College, in Long Branch, New Jersey, April 10-13. I have participated in NABCA for at least 10 of the 15 years, and I was honored to serve as president, several years ago. I appreciate the effort made by a large number of individuals over the years to make the NABCA conference so valuable, as well as to encourage research on branch campuses, through our very active research committee. Personally, I suspect that the opportunity to meet and develop friendships with people working in our too-often-overlooked sector of higher education provides the single greatest value of the conference. However, par...

I maintain two blogs. The older, “Branch Campus Life,” focuses on topics related to branch campuses of colleges and universities; the newer, “Creating the Future,” explores a wider range of topics related to my interest in innovation, positive psychology, and encore careers. Links to both blogs can be found on my web site, www.drcharlesbird.com. For the first time, I want to post the same entry on both blogs. This is not something I expect to do very often, but I’d like to offer a few summary thoughts about building enrollment in online programs and on branch campuses. I see a close relationship between the two, in terms of objectives and challenges. First, although institutions have many reasons for supporting branch campuses and online programs, the most important, by far, is that they expand access and opportunity for otherwise underserved audiences. I believe in the value of education and the significance of personal dreams. Branches and online programs have enormous potentia...

To wrap up this brief series on the future of branch campuses, I want to offer a few suggestions to those campus leaders who are prepared to rethink strategy. My recommendations follow from this premise: Branch campuses should base their strategy for growth on the idea that their student audience is most concerned about time to degree and the cost of that degree. (Obviously, the two are related.) Branches should develop their academic programming and student support services around providing individual attention that helps students reach their goals as quickly and efficiently, as possible. Campuses that thrive will be flexible and reasonable in the application of previously earned credits toward a degree, while making sure that they maintain high standards. (Institutions may lose some students who have clearly unreasonable expectations, but I always maintain that there is a market for quality. Just think carefully and well about what quality means.) Branches that thrive will emph...

For branch campuses to thrive in the newly competitive environment, I believe they have to focus sharply on their mission and on what they do best. Branches provide their home institution with a physical presence in the communities they serve, and they tend to do a good job of engaging with that community, as well as building political support for their institution. They have a history of providing strong support services for students, and they provide ease of access and flexibility for working adults. In terms of enrollment opportunities, I suspect that the future sweet spot for branch campuses lies in two areas: Partnering with whatever unit is developing and delivering online courses at their home institution, and focusing on the creation of hybrid delivery options. Hybrid delivery compromises some on flexibility, but provides enough structure and support to be appreciated by many students. Partnering between the online unit and branch campuses can substantially reduce the cost ...