Bennett College Successfully Focuses on Students

Interesting article on the EdDaily EDNC site, "Bennett College: Boldly moving through complex moments," with reporting by Nation Hahn.

President Suzanne Walsh and her team of faculty and staff are successfully redesigning the institution to serve a small student body.

You can also review several other Small College Garden posts featuring Bennett College:

• March 27, 2021 Bennett College Releases Strategic Statement Setting New Course as an Innovative Microcollege
• January 9, 2019 Overwhelming Support Emerges for Bennett College
• January 25, 2016 Bennett College is Featured...Impressive Changes over the past Decade

Bennett College Releases Strategic Statement Setting New Course as an Innovative Microcollege

Excellent local reporting by John Newsom of the Greensboro News & Record, "The Syllabus: A new direction for Bennett College." 

Newsom focuses on a strategic statement announced by the administration and board of Bennett College, "Designing for the Future at Bennett College: A Blueprint for HERstory." The joint statement by Bennett president Suzanne Walsh and board chairwoman Gladys Robinson is intended as a framework for strategic planning. 

One of the fascinating principals Newsom highlights is the commitment to operate as an innovative "micro college," with enrollment of about 200 undergraduate students. As Newsom notes, "Bennett had 233 students enrolled during the fall semester. Its statement suggests that the college's current size is both comfortable and viable."

Newsom concludes the article with a link to an interview by President Walsh earlier this month with Luke Lawal Jr. of HBCU Buzz.

Inside Higher Ed also posted a piece by Rick Seltzer, "Bennett College Outlines New Direction," on March 25, 2021.

Value of HBCUs is Apparent when talking with Alumni of Closed Institutions

The New York Times published an interesting article in late June, "‘Your Heritage Is Taken Away’: The Closing of 3 Historically Black Colleges," by Wadzanai Mhute. 

While Mhute initially references the struggles facing Bennett College in North Carolina and Pennsylvania's Cheyney University, the article focuses on the sense of support and feeling of community voiced by alumni of three HBCUs that closed, Concordia College in Selma, AL [1922-2018], Morristown College in Morristown, TN [1881-1994], and Saint Paul's College in Lawrenceville, VA [1888-2013].

You can read more about each of the three closed institutions by reviewing post on the College History Garden blog:

Concordia College

• Saturday, February 24, 2018 Concordia College Alabama will Close

Morristown College

• Saturday, October 30, 2010 Morristown College (TN)
• Monday, October 31, 2016 Morristown College (TN) Campus Purchased

Saint Paul's College

• Thursday, August 30, 2012 Saint Paul's College (VA) #1
• Monday, May 13, 2013 Saint Paul's College (VA) #2
• Friday, May 31, 2013 St. Paul's College (VA) #3
• Sunday, December 28, 2014 President of Saint Paul's College Recognized
• Wednesday, February 20, 2019 Museum and Archives Maintains Memory of Saint Paul's College

Guilford Edge: Curricular Change at Guilford College

Inside Higher Ed posted an interesting article by Colleen Flaherty on July 2, 2019, "Guilford's Gamble: Guilford College is changing the way it does most everything in an effort to stem its enrollment decline. But officials say it is also leaning in to its mission."

Flaherty describes a new curriculum known as the Guilford Edge that will include Initiate, an intensive three-week experience for first-year students and Collaborative Quest, where "...students, with the help of nonfaculty advisers, or "guides," design a sequence of courses to help them explore their interests."

You can also read more about the changes in "Guilford to Launch Game-Changing Educational Experience."

Importance of Institutional Diversity: Call for a New Balance of Mission and Metrics

Patricia McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University, provides a powerful commentary for The Chronicle of Higher Education on January 20, 2019, "Yes, We Need Accountability. But We Also Need Institutional Diversity."

Dr. McGuire uses her experience with institutional accreditation at Trinity Washington and the situation facing Bennett College to craft a call for re-balancing missions and quality metrics.

Overwhelming Support Emerges for Bennett College

The Greensboro (NC) News & Record and their education reporter, John Newsome, are providing excellent coverage of the unfolding situation for Bennett College after the institution learned in late 2018 that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges had voted to take away its accreditation.

"Standing with Bennett: Embattled Greensboro college attracts nationwide attention – and money" was published on January 7, 2019 and Newsome's reporting presents a detailed view of the situation and the overwhelmingly positive and supportive responses from Bennett's many friends, students, and alumni.  The article is accompanied by links to other recent relevant articles and contact information for anyone interesting in providing support.

Faculty and administrators at Bennett have been making significant changes for a number of years and it is evident through Newsome's articles that there is a strong commitment to keep the institution open and continue serving students.

 You can also link back to an earlier Small College Garden post that links to the January 2016 issue of Business North Carolina with reporting by Allison Williams, "Bennett College is Featured...Impressive Changes over the past Decade."

Guilford College and Every Campus a Refuge...A Case Study

The Association of American Colleges & Universities featured Guilford College in North Carolina in the group's December News, "Every Campus a Refuge: Guilford College's Powerful Effort to Help Refugees Resettle." The case study provides background information on the college and community Every Campus a Refuge (ECAR) initiative has hosted forty-two people from a variety of countries.

Diya Abdo, associate professor of English at Guilford served as a catalyst for the effort. She worked with campus administrators and Guilford's Center for Principled Problem Solving (CPPS) to both meet needs of refugees and develop links to Guilford's curriculum that include a cohort-based Principled Problem Solving Experience (PPSE) Minor.

Over 150 students, faculty, staff, and community members have participated in providing "...refugees with an on-campus faculty house, furniture from the college’s warehouse, and utilities including water, electricity, and internet. They also give families food from the campus’s farm on weekly basis, and in some cases they provided a semester of cafeteria meals. ECAR organizes donation drives for other items like clothes, food, and toys, and refugees can use bikes that had been abandoned or confiscated on campus."

You can visit the Guilford website for more information on Every Campus a Refugee or the Center for Principled Problem Solving (CPPS) that supports initiatives designed to solve real-world problems by applying the knowledge and skills gained through hands-on education and innovative research.

Signature Programs and Small Higher Education Institutions

Lawrence Biemiller's interesting article appears March 11, 2018 in The Chronicle of Higher Education, "Can a Signature Program Save Your College?" He addresses the appeal of signature programs and references a number of smaller institutions.  

Programs at eight colleges and universities are highlighted by Biemiller in the article.  He also notes that conversations are occurring between the institutions as they learn from each other. 

Biemiller includes comments from presidents indicating that signature programs by themselves will not save institutions and that it may take a long time for visible payoffs from the investments of time or other resources.  He also quotes a president who argues that there are a limited number of big ideas and it is better to keep the focus on controlling costs and increasing net revenues.

Jeff Selingo, a well known author and columnist for the Washington Post, commented this morning via Twitter that the benefits from signature programs are likely to decline over time as they are copied by other institutions.

Focus on Work Colleges: Lower Levels of Student Borrowing and Debt

The PBS Newshour posted, "Century-old 'work college' model regains popularity as student debt grows," on September 1, 2017, written by Timothy Pratt of The Hechinger Report.  He interviewed students and staff at several of the institutions and offers a picture of what it is like to attend the work colleges and administer the programs.  Pratt's primary focus is on the fact that work college students depend less on borrowing to finance their education and graduate with lower levels of student debt.

Pratt notes there have historically been seven institutions designated as work colleges and all are small institutions with enrollments under 2,000 students.  Paul Quinn College (TX) and Bethany Global University (MN) have just joined, raising the number of work colleges by two.  Silver Lake College (WI) is currently seeking the designation and hopes to do so next year.  

Warren Wilson College (NC) and Berea College (KY) are also highlighted in the post.

You can review several previous posts on the Small College Garden that feature Work Colleges:

•  Monday, March 27, 2017, Paul Quinn College: 1st HBCU and 1st urban institution to receive 'Work College' Designation
• Friday, September 16, 2016, PBS Series Features Paul Quinn College this Week
• Tuesday, August 30, 2016, Paul Quinn College and Michael Sorrell are featured in Washington Monthly
• Thursday, August 25, 2016, Spotlight on Sterling College as a model Work College
• Friday, August 28, 2015, Blackburn College & College of the Ozarks Highlighted as Work Colleges
• Wednesday, July 1, 2015, Weaving Program at Berry College Featured

Strategies behind Turn of Fortune at Greensboro College

The Greensboro, NC News & Observer published an interesting article, "Greensboro College: Back from the edge."  John Newsom reports on Greensboro's troubles immediately after 2009 and the refocusing of energy more recently to position the institution favorably for the future.  Newsom cites several key factors for the turn in fortunes, from an emphasis on controlling finances, a focus on first generation students, and an expansion of participation opportunities through the arts and athletes.  Enrollment this year passed 1,000 students with administrators looking at 1,300 and as a "comfortable" goal.  

The article is also accompanied by a list of key dates in the history of Greensboro College.  The college was founded as Greensboro Female Academy in 1838 and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.  It has been coed since 1954.

Black Mountain College serves as focus for fall festival at St. Andrews University

An article in The Laurinburg (NC) Exchange, "SAU puts spotlight on Black Mountain College, " highlights fall activities at St. Andrews University.  The Black Mountain College Festival begins August 26th and concludes in mid-November.  

There will an initial opening panel discussion to educate students and the community on the history of Black Mountain College that operated from 1933-1956.  Other activities will include poetry and prose readings, art exhibits, and dance performances.

Dr. Ted Wojtasik, St. Andrews faculty member serves as co-chair for the festival encouraged public participation in the various events.  Wojtasik and Dr. Tim Beach-Verhe, St. Andrews dean of students, are both interviewed for the article and emphasize the continuing influence of Black Mountain College on St. Andrews and other higher education institutions.

Black Mountain College with its reputation for innovative approaches to the arts and education has been the focus of a number of recent books, magazine articles, and exhibitions.

Turnaround at Montreat College

Julie Ball features Montreat College in her reporting for the Asheville, NC Citizen-Times, "After 'near death,' Montreat College celebrates milestone."  The college is located just east of Asheville in Montreat, NC and enrolls roughly 1,000 students.  There were several articles on the financial problems facing the institution during 2014.  Ball's extensive article provides details of the issues and recent activities leading to a more positive future.  The article also includes a number of photographs and a timeline of the institution's history.

Bennett College is Featured...Impressive Changes over the past Decade

Allison Williams writes for the January 2016 issue of Business North Carolina on Bennett College in Greensboro and the many positive change over the past decade at the institution.

Black Mountain College, Examination of the Legacy

Forbes Lifestyle section features reflections by Jonathan Keats that include comments on the continuing impact of Black Mountain College in North Carolina, a small institution that only operated for 24 years, closing in 1957.  Keats also notes that the Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart – Berlin is presenting the first comprehensive exhibition in Germany devoted to Black Mountain College.

Salisbury, NC: A Unique College Town

Jeanie Groh of the Salisbury Post offers reflections on Salisbury, NC as a unique college town from interviews with economic development experts and college administrators and students.  Groh's highlights both benefits to the community and the ways in which the community is part of students' lives.  Referencing a recent report released by the the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, Groh notes that just under one-half of the students come from outside the immediate region and add $91.3 million to the regional economy each year.

Salisbury is home to four higher education institutions:  Catawba College, founded in 1851 with enrollment of 1,300 students; Livingstone College, with 1,175 students and Hood Theological Seminary, with 181 students; and, Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, with 6,731 students.  Livingstone College, founded in 1879, and Hood Theological Seminary, founded in 1903, have historic ties with the AME Zion Church.