We looked back at 2018 and ahead to the new year to determine where college leaders can expect to focus their attention in the coming months.
The pressures on colleges as 2019 opens are numerous. They include — but are no means limited to — historically low state financing, competition over shrinking pools of potential students, slowed growth in international student enrollment, and a push from nearly all stakeholders for proof of return on their investments, often in the form of workforce-ready graduates.
Those challenges could bring financial struggles for many colleges while also inspiring experiments, innovation, and new ventures and partnerships. Looking back at 2018 and ahead to the new year, we’ve outlined nine trends expected to shape 2019 as higher ed leaders respond to an always changing, and often challenging, playing field.
Capital campaigns will get more ambitious
Colleges have been turning ever more to private donors because of declining state funding and market limits on tuition hikes. Last year, The University of Michigan completed a record $5 billion fundraising campaign, led by 550 development staff members and 1,600 fundraising volunteers.