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In order for colleges and universities to truly prepare students for the real world, these places of higher learning need to cultivate diverse populations. There is a lot of attention placed on the changing face of college students but I feel that for college campuses to truly remain effective long term, diversity in faculty needs to be a paramount concern.

Why is Diversity Important on College Campuses?

Student bodies are no longer composed of primarily male, white students. Some estimates show that half of America’s current workforce now passes through college first and 75 percent of students in high school spend at least some time studying in a higher education setting. That number is up from an elite four percent in 1900. What’s more – the numbers of college students from low-income and minority families continues to rise. More Americans from every color and creed are now earning college educations so college faculty should reflect that. While students can certainly learn from people outside their own sex, ethnicity and belief system, faculty with similar backgrounds provide stronger role models.

Diversity in faculty should not only be sought out for the students’ advantage though; the college legacy as a whole benefits when many different perspectives are represented. Yes, it is important to have diversity in student populations but those groups are temporary college residents. Faculty members have the long-term ability to shape the campus culture and make it more in sync with the rest of the real world.

How Diverse are College Campuses Today?

The short answer is “not very.” A report from the National Center for Education Statistics found that full-time faculty on college campuses heavily favors white candidates (at just over 1 million) over black (not even 100,000), Asian (86,000) and Hispanic (under 60,000) faculty. These numbers may not mean much out of context however, so let’s take a closer look at why they matter.

While nearly 30 percent of undergraduate students around the nation are considered minorities, just over 12 percent of full-time faculty are minorities. That number drops to around 9 percent for full-time professors of color. Though half of all undergraduate students are women, roughly one-third of full-time professors are women. In 1940, the number of women faculty was at 25 percent, showing just how slowly this particular minority group is climbing. The numbers are going in the right direction, but not quickly enough.

So, What’s the Problem?

Faculty positions are extremely competitive. Colleges and universities often value professors that have publishing ability, or a strong past of publication, over actual teaching methods. This is not to say that there are not women and minorities with high qualifications but rather to point out that sometimes sex and race are simply not part of the hiring equation. Facts and figures on a resume are tangible ways to show what a particular candidate can bring to the job. It is more difficult for higher education decision makers to gauge the benefit of a person’s background or life experience on the students that pay good money to learn at a particular institution.

That being said, many colleges are stepping up their diverse hiring games. Schools like the University of California, Harvard and the University of Washington both study faculty diversity issues and try to piece together the most well-represented group of educators possible. Even Historically Black Colleges and Universities are trying to bring in students and faculty members outside the traditional population, especially since the original mission of those schools has changed. Certainly there are strides being made but in order to best serve each generation of college students, the push for faculty diversity needs to continue on an upward path.

The face of higher education is rapidly evolving as more middle- to low-class young people find ways to obtain a college degree or technical training. The Hispanic population in the U.S. is no exception as the number of college applicants and enrollees increase every year. While these strides benefit this specific group of students, everyone stands to benefit from Hispanic higher education success.

The Numbers

The U.S. Census reports that the estimated Hispanic population in the nation is 52 million – making residents of Hispanic origin the largest minority in the country. In fact, one of every six Americans is a Hispanic. That number is expected to rise to over 132 million by 2050 and Hispanics will then represent 30 percent of the U.S. population. Children with Hispanic roots make up 23 percent of the age 17 and under demographic — making future higher education legislation critical for this growing and thriving minority group.
The Issues
Young people of Hispanic origin face specific challenges when it comes to higher education. Many prospective students are first-generation Americans, or even undocumented residents, and do not have the first-hand experience or guidance from parents regarding the college experience in the U.S. Like all other ethnic groups, Hispanic youth face financial difficulty when trying to determine if college is a possibility. Many young Hispanics may feel overwhelmed by the social and financial pressure associated with college attendance and are in need of the right guidance. While higher education initiatives are changing to address these issues, only 13 percent of the Hispanic population over the age of 25 had a bachelor’s degree or higher in the 2010 Census.

Federal Initiative

The Obama administration recognizes the rapid growth of the Hispanic community, specifically as it impacts higher education, and has put several pieces of legislation into motion including the DREAM Act. First introduced in the U.S. Senate in August 2001, the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act was designed to reward children in good standing that came to the country illegally. Temporary residency is granted for a six-year time frame for young people that seek out higher educational pursuits with an option for permanent residency after completion of a bachelor’s degree or beyond.

The bill went through several iterations before President Obama announced in June 2012 that his administration would stop deporting undocumented immigrants meeting DREAM Act criteria. While this legislation applies to more than Hispanic immigrants, they are the group that stands to benefit the most from its enactment. With no fear of deportation, Hispanic youth with higher education aspirations are free to pursue them and work toward a better individual and collective future.

What’s Ahead?

Increasing higher education opportunities for Hispanics has obvious positive benefits for the demographic itself, but the influence will be felt even further. Think of it as a ripple effect, where the Hispanic community represents the initial splash and all other ethnic groups feel the impact too. The Obama Administration has made known its goals to make the U.S. the leader in college degrees earned in proportion to population. In order for this goal to be met, Hispanics (specifically those of Latino descent) will need to earn 3.3 million degrees between now and 2020. The economic success of geographic areas, specifically urban areas, is directly affected by the number of college graduates that study and stay there. In states like Texas, this is an especially poignant point where a one-point college graduate rate increase can result in $1.5 billion more in annual economic activity for cities like San Antonio. Without the help of Hispanic youth, these numbers are difficult, if impossible, to achieve.

Legislation like the DREAM Act is just the start of changing the culture of higher education to be more welcoming to Hispanic youth. Individual colleges and universities must also step up and offer academic and financial aid programs with specific Hispanic needs in mind. The future achievements of higher education in the U.S. are dependent upon the inclusion and success of Hispanic students and the same is true of a stable economic climate. The sooner that federal and state initiatives, along with colleges and universities, embrace these inevitabilities, the better.

Each year online learning initiatives becomes less of a fringe movement and more of an incorporated, and accepted, form of education. More than 6.7 million people took at least one online class in the fall of 2011 and 32 percent of college students now take at least one online course during their matriculation. It is even becoming commonplace for high schools to require all students to take an online class before graduation as a way to prep them for the “real world” of secondary education.

The flexibility and convenience of online learning is well known but what is not as readily talked about is the way distance education promotes diversity of the college population. With less red tape than the traditional college format, online students are able to earn credits while still working full time, maintaining families and dealing with illnesses. Whether students take just one course remotely, or obtain an entire degree, they are able to take on the demands of college life more readily – leading to student population with more variety.

The Babson Survey Research Group recently revealed that while online college student enrollment is on the rise, traditional colleges and universities saw their first drop in enrollment in the ten years the survey has been conducted. This drop is small – less than a tenth of one percent – but its significance is big. A trend toward the educational equality of online curriculum is being realized by students, institutions and employers across the board. The benefits of a college education through quality online initiatives are now becoming more accessible to students that simply cannot commit to the constraints of a traditional campus setting.

A controversial experiment that could lead the way to even more college credit accessibility is MOOCs, or massive open online courses. As the name implies, these classes are offered to the general public at a low cost, or no cost, in the hopes of earning their students college credit. California-based online course provider Coursera recently had five of its offerings evaluated by the American Council on Education for college credit validity. Four of the courses were recommended for college credit by ACE, and one was endorsed for vocational credit, providing student work verification through a strict proctoring process.

These credits are not earned through community colleges or online-institutions; Duke University, the University of California at Irvine and the University of Pennsylvania are on Coursera’s list of places the courses will earn credit for students that pay a nominal fee. Students that obtain these credits through Coursera can approach any higher education institution and seek their inclusion in a degree program, but the final discretion is up to the particular school.

MOCCs are certainly in an infancy stage and do not provide a “sure thing” yet for students that participate. In the Babson survey mentioned earlier, only 2.6 percent of schools offer a MOOC, but an additional 9.4 percent are building a MOCC plan. The potential for further diversity and equality in education through MOCCs is certainly on the horizon. This form of online learning means that students do not have to commit to an entire course of study to obtain credits or even commit to a particular institution upfront.

MOOCs will further eliminate the socio-economic barriers that keep promising students from seeking out college credits. Students are given more flexibility in scheduling at an affordable price. Though the MOOC trend has its dissenters, I believe it will win over even the most skeptical and increase accessibility for all people that seek higher education. After all, at one time the mention of online courses raised a few eyebrows in the educational community and look how far the concept has come. Further development of online initiatives, specifically in the area of MOOCs, represents the next big step for enriching the diversity of the college student population in America.

College football is arguably the most popular sport at the nation’s colleges and universities. Bringing in over $90 million annually in revenue at the highest grossing University of Texas, it is no wonder that school leaders view the football team as less of an extracurricular activity and more of a moneymaker. The revenue that is generated by college football programs only represents a small piece of the overall financial benefits. Schools with strong athletic programs, particularly in the area of football, bring in more prospective students and have larger booster groups in place.

The Facts

Not many African American head coaches at the college level have had the same success as Strong – mainly because many have not been given the chance. Of the 124 Division 1-A college football schools, only 15 had African American coaches in the 2012 season, according to an executive report by the Black Coaches Association. The Big Ten conference has seen zero black head coaches in the past 10 years.

While head coaches are the most visible, support positions are severely underrepresented as well. Only 312 of 1,018 of college football assistant coaches are black and only 31 of 255 of offensive and defensive coordinators are African American. Combined, black football coaches and support staff represent a measly 5 percent of Football Bowl Subdivision numbers.

At Division II and Division III schools, diversity is even worse. The Black Coaches Association reports that in the 2012 season, only 9 schools of 113 in these two categories had head coaches of color. These numbers exclude historically black universities.

The Problem

Despite the thousands of black college football players in recent decades, barely a handful have been trusted with leading teams. These ex-players obviously understand the game and know what college athletes face on the field — so what gives?

Part of the problem is that schools are quick to dismiss coaches of all backgrounds when immediate improvement does not take place. The most recent high-profile example was the firing of Jon Embree by the University of Colorado in November. Floyd Keith of the Black Coaches Association called the firing a “disappointment” and wished that the school had given Embree a third season to prove himself. The school pointed to a 4-21 record over the course of two seasons as the reason for the firing but critics, like Keith, say that just two years is simply not enough time to turn a team around.

Many critics are also quick to point out that white coaches with bad numbers are often still considered a hot commodity by other schools when they are on the market, whereas black coaches have historically been given just one shot to prove their talent.

It is also important to note that a college football coach does not have the same responsibilities as an NFL one. Winning is valuable to the university, but so are other aspects like graduation rates of players and team conduct. Both play an indirect role in the revenue the school is able to generate in future years by attracting new students. Yet with turnover rates of all college coaches rising every football season, a shift toward a “winning takes place on the field” mentality is evident.

Solutions

The statistics are indisputable when it comes to underrepresentation of African Americans in all levels of college football coaching. With so much being said about this issue, not much in the way of problem solving has arisen. Colleges and universities would do well to take a cue from the NFL when it comes to hiring minority coaches. Established in 2003, the Rooney Rule requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate for all vacant head coaching positions and other executive football operation spots. After just three seasons, the Rooney Rule lead to an increase of 22 percent in the number of African American head coaches in the NFL and those numbers rise every season. A similar rule only makes sense in a college athletic setting, especially since so many other aspects of higher education use affirmative action programs to bolster diversity and opportunity.

Another possible option is for schools to set up coaching mentorship programs for minority players that show leadership potential. An even better approach would be an NCAA-sanctioned program that seeks out talented players and gives them some exposure to coaching and maybe even a certificate program. These earmarked players could then begin working their way through the coaching ranks sooner and have a common knowledge base.

All changes need to be initiated by the NCAA, college athletics governing body. For a real dynamic shift to be felt across the board, every school needs to have the same diversity opportunities and rules as all the others. It is not enough to wish that more schools took a closer look at African Americans to fill head football coaching spots; an overarching game plan needs to be in place for true change to occur.

College presidents must be able to multitask. Though not in the official job descriptions, these administrative leaders must be figureheads, court the general public, delegate effectively and always keep an eye on the horizon to guide their ships to bigger, better waters. It is a tough job and like many high-profile ones, comes with its share of scrutiny in the public eye.

As the latest wave of college presidents looks towards retirement, the higher education community has the opportunity to promote a more diverse presidential core. The next five years will set the tone for college leadership at the highest level for the coming decades and really for the entire student population too.

Just the Facts

• 61. Average age of college presidents in 2011.
• 92. Percentage of college presidents aged in the mid-50s to mid-70s.
• 14. Average number of years retiring college presidents first serve in the role.
• 40. Normal number of new college presidents in the American Association of State Colleges and Universities every year.
• 109. Actual number of new college presidents from April 2011 to August 2012.
• 6. Number of new college presidents this school year in the California State system alone.
• 13. Percentage of college presidents who are racial or ethnic minorities, as of 2012.
• 14. Percentage of college presidents who were racial or ethnic minorities in 2006.
• 26. Percentage of women college presidents.

Qualified Prospects

In the past, college presidents from other schools and college vice presidents have most often ascended the ranks to fill empty presidential seats. While this still happens about 19 and 25 percent of the time, respectively, other leaders like provosts and deans are increasingly being considered to fill the college president vacancies. Some schools even search outside the college community to find leaders from other industries that fit the bill. There is really no hiring formula that applies to all college president spots and a “qualified” candidate could feasibly jump several levels of hierarchy to claim the spot.

Encouraging Diversity in Presidential Ranks

The first step to building diversity at the highest college administrative level is simply recognizing the opportunity at hand. American institutions of higher education often consider how a diverse student, and even faculty, population should look but do not extend that to top-tier leadership roles. Colleges need to rethink that strategy. I believe the trickle-down diversity effect works well in college settings. Instead of starting with the largest group (students), start cultural change at the top of the pyramid. If a school has a well-balanced student population already in place, chances are that the faculty and administration reflect that fact too.

The next step is to actively include diversity in the search process. I’m not saying that white men with the right qualifications should be excluded from the running; I just mean that colleges with open president seats should make sure the short list of candidates has some variety in experience, ethnicity, sex and race. The Rooney Rule, established in 2003 by the NFL, mandates that at least one minority candidate be interviewed for all head coaching spots. I think colleges need to do that same with their academic leaders.

Those in lower to middle-level leadership roles in colleges that have presidential aspirations should get ready now. Make sure your name is associated with talks about the future of the college by getting yourself involved in the action. Get published. Envision yourself on the same plane as the college presidents that went before you but realize that you have a unique voice to lend to the college community you want to lead. Embrace the turning tides. Be an active part of the changes in college administration and you will in turn be part of the progress.

College attendance has become less of a privilege and more of a necessity in the contemporary workforce. This cultural shift is a reflection of President Obama’s goal of having the largest percentage of college graduates out of all the countries in the world by 2020. With this push has come an influx of students that may not have been part of the college scene as early as a decade ago. Availability of courses online and expansion of options at the community college level have paved the way for non-traditional students to earn degrees and a better living. A growing demographic in college attendance and graduation is first-generation students.

More “Firsts” Than Ever

A 2010 study by the Department of Education found that 50 percent of the college population is made up of first-generation students, or those whose parents did not receive education beyond a high school diploma. The National Center for Education Statistics released numbers in 2010 that broke down the educational levels of parents of current college attendees. Minority groups made up the largest demographics of students with parents that had a high school education or less, with 48.5 percent of Latino and Hispanic students and 45 percent of Black or African-American students included. The parents of students of Asian descent came in at 32 percent with a high school diploma or less and Native Americans at 35 percent. Of students that identified themselves as Caucasian, only 28 percent were first-generation college students.

Though higher in minority groups, these numbers show the overarching trend of first-generation college attendance in all American demographics. While an education is viewed as an advantage in the job marketplace, the degree alone does not automatically lead to better opportunities and pay. In order to ensure optimal career success in the growing group of first-generation college students, the specific needs of these young people must be addressed – beyond what lies in textbooks.

Challenges Facing First-Generation Students

The simple assumption is that a higher number of educated first-generation college students will translate to better jobs for these graduates and a better quality of life. The answer to the equation is just not that simple, however. Even with a college degree, first-generation students often come from low-income, minority or immigrant families and do not have the same set of life skills and personal capital of middle-to-high income bracket students.

Parents of first-generation students also do not have the life experience to adequately guide their children to the next step in succeeding in the college-educated workforce. A 2004 report in the Journal of Higher Education put it this way: “first-generation students… may be less prepared than similar students whose parents are highly educated, to make the kind of informed choices… that potentially maximize educational progression and benefits.”

The transition from a college setting to a full-time career is often bumpy for all college students, especially first-generation graduates. The things learned in a classroom simply cannot adequately translate to the real-world; in addition to “book smarts” colleges and universities have a responsibility to prepare attendees, particularly first-generation ones, for the challenges of the modern workforce.

What Can Be Done

There are some federally funded programs in place to address the specific issues that face first-generation college students, like the TRIO and Robert McNair programs that lend academic and tutoring services to this group. The problem with these programs, and others like them, is that they are not required for college graduation and are vastly underutilized. A better approach is proactive mentorship and advising that mandates interaction between students and professors or other staff members that can provide real-world guidance. These programs would focus on the translation of knowledge to marketplace settings from people that know the ropes.

Colleges and universities should also place continued focus on developing skills and employability among students. Schools with especially high numbers of first-generation students, like California State University Dominquez Hills, have implemented workforce “101” courses to up the social and intellectual skills of future graduates. It is not enough to assume that students inherently know how to apply classroom skills to a real-world environment, particularly in the case of first-generation ones. Researching the needs of these students should be a priority of all institutions of higher education as it would help them form a better-prepared student body and strong workforce.

photo credit: CollegeDegrees360 via photopin cc

You may think that the cold of winter is too early to start thinking about summer internships, but the competition for placement is already heating up. Companies have already begun accepting applications for summer, and as a result, students vying for top spots need to start preparing now. This can be easier said than done, as students have more choices, but also greater competition.

For this week’s installment of “Diverse Conversations,” I interviewed L.J. Brock, Vice President, Talent Acquisition and People Infrastructure at Red Hat. L.J. and I discussed Red Hat’s internship program and the 5 questions he says all interns should ask to increase their options and make sure they secure the best opportunity to drive their future.

Q: How has today’s young workforce changed from the workforce of, for example, 10 years ago?

A: The workforce of today, as a whole, has the same attitude that the startup workforce had 10 years ago. There’s a lot of confidence and willingness to take chances. People want to make their marks at a company and be recognized for the amount of work they put in and I think jobseekers are looking for a job they care about, doing work that excites them, at a company whose mission they can believe in. It’s really competitive, especially in the technology industry. The stigma of moving from job to job is gone and people don’t feel they have to pay their dues in order to move up. Everyone is looking for, and finding, what they want, now.

Q: Is there any particular type of environment that college graduates expect when they enter the workforce? For example, do they expect companies to be open to their ideas, or is it just a matter of “come in and do your job?”

A: The main things that attract people, including college graduates, to Red Hat are our environment and culture. The ability to make an impact and see that impact on day one is paramount and I think a lot of these jobseekers are over the idea of “just doing a job” and going home. They want to influence. They want to be recognized. And they want to do this on a grand scale, no matter their title and time in the job. Red Hat has always operated as a meritocracy – your ideas really matter here and the best ideas will rise to the top. It’s how we work in developing software and it’s how our company moves forward– through our people, their hard work, and their ideas.

Q: What should the ultimate goal of the internship be? Gain knowledge? Get a better idea of what the working world is like? Get a job at the company you’re interning at?

A: When it comes to our internship program, we treat these students as peers. We’ve been operating this program for over 10 years and while the size and scope has certainly grown, the idea of how it works has stayed the same. The goal, of course, is to find young talent and get them in the door. We show them the opportunities that Red Hat offers and they’re given the chance to come in and experience our culture and to work on projects that matter. There’s no benefit in having these intelligent people come in and work on imaginary problems or push papers around– we want them solving real problems and getting real experience they can use no matter where they end up. We want them to make an impact. The ultimate goal is to have them continue on with Red Hat, but it takes a lot of initiative, a cultural fit, and the ability to adapt to change. We love the idea of hiring interns because they already understand our mission and what it takes to succeed at Red Hat.

Q: Can you provide some background on Red Hat’s internship program?

A: Our internship program has been around for over 10 years and keeps growing in size and to new geographies. We work to identify the best and brightest college students, usually in their junior or senior years, and bring them in to work on various teams across Red Hat. We’ve had interns in engineering, finance, human resources, marketing, legal, design, and customer support in the past, and we work to expose them to other areas of the organization for a multi-disciplinary look into what it is to be a Red Hatter. They get hands-on meetings with our executives and participate in many activities geared toward giving them the full Red Hat experience in just a few short months.

Q: Why is it important for applicants to start applying to internships so early in the year? And, how has this process changed over the past several years?

A: There’s not just a huge amount of competition out there for talent, but also for jobs and internships. Students should get the earliest possible jump on an internship to give themselves the longest period of time to find the right fit. The job they may want will not be there forever, so getting in early is key. We’re looking to fill these open jobs and if we don’t know about the candidate and their abilities, there’s no guarantee. Job fairs also take place early in the school year and that’s another great way to find out about what is offered and for the students to, in some cases, meet the person hiring for specific roles. This has changed somewhat over the years as internships are no longer an add-on for a company’s strategy. It’s become an integral key in how they find and hire talent.

Q: In a past interview I conducted with Dr. Lynn C. Owens, Associate Professor of Communication, William Peace University, Raleigh, NC, she reported that research shows students are not as prepared as they should be for the workforce. How can initiatives like Red Hat’s internship program help shift those statistics?

A: Knowledge is power, but experience is what gets you hired. Red Hat believes that the key to having a young workforce succeed is to get them the experience they need as soon as possible. And that’s real-world experience. Internships should be all about learning how to take your knowledge and apply it in a professional setting. Internships are also about making yourself an asset to employers, so we hope that as internships as a whole become more serious and focused, we will see some of these statistics around preparedness improve.

Q: So, you mention there are 5 questions all intern applicants should consider if they make it to an in-person interview. What are those questions and why are they important?

A: Always remember that you’re not the only one being questioned. The employer is also being interviewed by you, so find out as much about the job as they are finding out about you:

1) What kinds of projects would I be working on? Make sure this internship aligns with your career goals and builds on the knowledge and skills you’ve already gained. If there’s not a clear set of goals for your time at the company, that may be a red flag that you should look elsewhere.

2) What would a typical day look like? This will help you decide whether the environment and work is for you. Internships run the gamut from major learning opportunities to extreme grunt work. Know what you’re getting into.

3) Are there regular activities for the interns outside of normal work? Many companies, including Red Hat, have a full-fledged intern program that include activities such as volunteering, seminars, ballgames, cook-outs, and the like. These can be valuable in meeting new people, executives, and other hiring managers from around the company.

4) What do you like most about working here? Learning about the company’s culture and work experience can help you determine whether it’s a good fit for you.

5) Have you stayed in contact with previous interns? Ideally, the employer can reference past interns that now work there full time. In addition, it’s a good sign if that individual can think of interns who have moved on to interesting roles within the company or in other highly regarded companies.

We would like to thank L.J. Brock for taking the time to speak to us.

Note: The following post comes to us courtesy of Mike Broderick, Co-Founder & CEO, Turning Technologies.

According to a Pew Internet survey on mobile device use, 35% of Americans age 16 and up own a tablet. K-12 districts, universities and corporate learning programs are also driving the tablet trend, with some purchasing iPads and other tablets to replace textbooks and expand education capabilities with the hardware students already use to communicate and access entertainment. But the experiment doesn’t always proceed as planned.

A plan to distribute iPads to more than 30,000 Los Angeles students hit a speed bump last year when students figured out how to disable security features that were supposed to keep them off social media sites. A school official observed that problems were inevitable because the iPad program was “rushed” and “ill thought out.” And that seems to be a common theme: Too many educators are rushing to join the tablet trend because such programs are considered “cool” or “cutting edge,” when what they should really aim for is measurable benefits.

Fortunately, there are strategic ways to use mobile technology in the education space – it just requires a focus on using technology to drive positive outcomes rather than fixating on the hardware. Educators – whether in K-12, higher education or the corporate training space – need to ask the right question: Does the use of this technology improve outcomes?

To get the best results with an iPad, educators can pair the hardware with software that has a proven track record of success in deepening learner engagement. For example, interactive software that is currently on the market can enable teachers to embed questions directly into presentations, poll students in real time and instantly chart responses. This enables teachers to gauge students’ grasp of the material in the classroom, letting educators know when it’s okay to move on to the next topic and when more time is needed to go over the material.

Software solutions can also enable students to replicate virtually any action they can produce on paper on a touchscreen, such as labeling display items, moving featured graphics around and responding to essay questions. But with a tablet, students’ work can be instantly uploaded, stored and viewed, giving it a key advantage over paper. With the right software solutions, educators can significantly expand capabilities while increasing student engagement.

Better student engagement and expanded capabilities are reason enough for educators to look for the right software package, but data is another important factor to keep in mind. By generating and analyzing data – both in the context of a particular classroom session or assignment as well as aggregate data across the wider program – educators can identify what’s working and what’s not and adjust their strategies accordingly.

Tablets are quickly becoming an essential part of the everyday life and a prominent feature on the education landscape. But to make mobile devices an effective part of the learning process, educators must ensure that they pair their new hardware with effective software assets. By finding the right combination, educators can achieve greater levels of student engagement, significantly expand capabilities and generate incredibly valuable data. And that’s truly cool.

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here. 

More and more academics are recognizing the potential to supplement their income from higher education positions with out-of-the-box projects and schemes. To try and get to grips with the so called academic entrepreneur, I met with Shonell Bacon, Instructor of Mass Communication at McNeese State University.

The goal of this discussion is to help other academics understand the relationship between academic standing and entrepreneurship, how you can marry the two concepts together to generate supplementary income.

Q: So, the first question is about characterization – how would you characterize the academic entrepreneur in today’s world? Who are these people and what is it that they are doing, what makes them unique? What, too, are the benefits of being an academic entrepreneur in terms of how it benefits the individual and one’s career in academia?

A: The academic entrepreneur is someone who knows what their talents are and is able to capitalize on them. That’s my short definition. They are able to take those qualities that make them excel in the academic arena and apply them to additional revenue streams. I’m not sure if they are unique so much as their are always looking for opportunities. They are broad thinkers with narrow goals and lanes to optimize success for those goals. ——-

Q: Considering your own experiences and efforts in academia and the business world, can you share some insights about what it is like to be an academic entrepreneur and what it is that’s particularly advantageous about this approach?

A: For me, the biggest advantage to this approach is how I use knowledge from these two worlds, academic and business, to better myself in both worlds. For example, outside of academia, I am an author and an editor. With both, I constantly use my creativity; my knowledge of grammar, structure, and organization; my ability to think outside the box to strengthen my own writing as an author and others’ writing as an editor. When I’m in the classroom, I bring these tools with me. When I’m considering academic research projects, I use my creative, my outside-the- box thinking to explore topics that on the surface might not seem as academic as other topics, but in the end, they are creative endeavors for me that satisfy their academic requirements.

Q: How would you describe the relationship between entrepreneurship and academia?

A: How, would you say, is the world of higher education working to accommodate entrepreneurialism? I think, more or less, I cover the first question in bits and pieces in other responses. With the second question, I would probably say that higher education’s embrace of technology, especially with moving some classes online, allows for this accomodation in a way because it forces educators to think outside the box and figure out how to deliver the same quality education electronically. That might not seem like a big thing, but I think about my first foray into online teaching, and I clearly remember how teaching online made me consider how I might offer my expertise in other areas digitally. The minute I had to reconsider and think creatively about my teaching, those same reconsiderations came to me in regards to entrepreneurial endeavors. I also think about the “leisure learning” style courses that are offered at most colleges and universities. Oftentimes, these courses enable academics to make a little money in activities outside of their academic work. For example, I’ve taught leisure learning classes in fiction writing, fiction workshop, and developing projects for submissions. These courses allowed me to blend my teaching qualities with those qualities often exhibited in my entrepreneurial activities. I also think that schools, such as University of Phoenix, those schools that offer credit for “life learning” and business activities and experience suggest that entrepreneuralism–the work we do outside of academia–is important.

Q: What, would you say, are some of the biggest challenges for someone in academia looking to also become entrepreneur, looking to take that step to achieving some real financial independence through entrepreneurial ventures?

A: Biggest challenge is time. I think about my own experiences, and I can say that most of my time is dedicated to academic endeavors. Work doesn’t end because you leave your campus office. With working 60+ hours a week, sometimes more, academics often don’t have the time for entrepreneurial activities, especially if they want to have some life to live while also taking care of home and family. And that time affects them in another way, too, because you have to make time to think on the idea of entrepreneurship: what skills do I have as an academic? How might those skills be useful outside of academia? What non-academic skills do I have? How can I bridge these skills to develop real financial independence through entrepreneurial ventures? There has to be time taken to consider these questions and others before a person can even get to developing the success s/he wants.

Q: Do you think entrepreneurship is something that more academics will go on to embrace? How do you see the role of the academic entrepreneur emerging? Do you see it expanding, perhaps? If so, why? If not, why not?

A: I definitely think more academics will embrace entrepreneurship. One reason will be out of necessity, say for example, the need for additional money. But others will come to embrace it because we live in such a fluid, technological world where one person can seamlessly move in and through many identities at any one time. Technology, whether it’s the actual device, or the app, or the software, etc., enables us to branch into other arenas, and more academics can take part of entrepreneurship through technology. Because of technology and the ability for an academic to blend multiple identities simultaneously, the field will definitely not only emerge, but also expand. I definitely see this more so for the future as younger academics come into the landscape, particularly those who are digital natives, from birth living with Internet and the many other advances of technology.

We would like to thank Shonell for sitting down with us.

In these increasingly uncertain times, colleges and universities are forced to come up with innovative ways to deal with funding cutbacks and revenue shortfalls. In this installment of “Diverse Conversations,” Lewis Duncan, President of Rollins College, dispenses advice on how higher education institutions can strategically manage their resources in a manner that can help them thrive during these financially turbulent times.
In the face of unprecedented fiscal challenges, how can colleges and universities maximize their increasingly scarce resources?

Most private liberal arts institutions are highly dependent on student revenue. At Rollins College, for example, 86 percent of our total annual operating budget is derived from student revenue.

One way to maximize increasingly scarce resources is to find innovative ways to supplement the operating budget. Our approach was The Alfond Inn, a boutique hotel that opened in August 2013. The Inn, located a block from campus, not only meets a community need for lodging and conference space, but also provides full scholarships (tuition, room and board) for top students through The Alfond Scholars program — the College’s premier scholarship fund. Net operating income from the Inn will be directed to the scholarship fund for the next 25 years or until the endowment principal reaches $50 million, whichever comes later. The allowable spending from the endowment will supplement the operating budget in the form of additional financial aid support.

Q: What’s the value of your school’s endowment now compared to last year? How has this impacted the way that you allocate your university’s resources?

A: The market value of our endowment on May 31, 2013 was $349.1 million, which is an increase of $17.6 million over the previous year. Currently, our endowment provides approximately 10 percent of our annual operating costs, and that percentage has held constant through market fluctuations.

In addition to our endowment, we have invested in commercial real estate in the Winter Park community, which annually provides more than $2 million in net return in support of our operations. The real estate is also increasing in value and could be sold at some point in the future, which would add to our endowment investments.

Q: Given the current economic climate, how have you addressed the fragile balance of maintaining high academic standards with the need to keep enrollment high enough to pay the bills?

A: Rollins has experienced record enrollment in our undergraduate day programs each year for the past three years. We are now nearing 1,900 students, which is close to capacity. We are land locked and do not have the opportunity to continue to expand enrollment, which makes it even more important to look towards other sources for funds to help pay for the increasing costs of operations.

Through this growth period, we have been able to maintain our high academic standards with a low faculty-to-student ratio and continued recognition as the #1 comprehensive private liberal arts institution in the South as rated by US News & World Report. We will not compromise academic standards.

Q: What do you think should be done in terms of reforming the way we fund higher education in the United States?

A: We might find better incentives for families to plan long term and save for college. The current federal grants and loan programs actually advantage families who have not saved. Perhaps we could consider a partial tax deduction for such educational savings plans at the federal (rather than state) level. We also support additional measures of educational accountability, but urge that such standards consider the lifelong and career-long benefits of higher education, not just a graduate’s entry-level job or pay.

Q: As you look to Rollins College’s future, what new directions do you see the university taking?

A: We will be seeking to run the College as efficiently as possible while preserving the special values of a liberal arts education. We will also be pursuing new revenue opportunities in both degree and non-degree programs, expanding partnerships with similar small colleges using online and blended learning cooperative programs and expanding our traditional student body to include additional non-traditional and international students.

Well, that concludes my interview with President Duncan. I would like to thank him for consenting to this interview and for his contributions to the field of higher education and humanity in general.