University Business - May 2011 - (Page 11)

$32,000 DATA POINT Amount the Rutgers University Programming Association paid Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi of the reality TV show “Jersey Shore” to speak there in March. —Associated Press survival of the fittest: adaptive ownership in the 21st century Darwin put it this way: “it is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. it is the one that’s most adaptable to change.” this simple truth in nature describes the evolution of higher ed ownership models in the 21st century. the previous decade produced a number of nonprofit colleges that transitioned into for-profits, whether by choice or exigent circumstances. these proprietary colleges and universities have emerged as a new breed of customer-centered, career-driven institutions—placing students and employers first. Daniel webster College (n.h.) provides an instructive case in point. Chartered in 1965, it evolved into a small, tuition-dependent campus. over time, Daniel webster faced irreversible financial challenges, and was threatened with loss of accreditation and inevitable closure. in 2009, itt educational services purchased the institution and invested tens of millions of dollars to cover its debts. through the for-profit acquisition process, DwC was able to preserve its core mission, and the preponderance of its faculty, staff, and programs. as a result, the college was eventually successful in recruiting new leadership, culling outdated and underenrolled programs, and putting in place an adaptive management structure. Consider as well the New England College of Business and Finance in Boston. facing hard times, the college was acquired in 2005 by the whitney University system. through private, for-profit investment, the college has expanded its market and now offers online courses in a variety of business-related programs. similarly, waldorf College (iowa) faced daunting economic challenges and was sold to the Mayes education group, a for-profit education company, in 2010. today, waldorf offers accelerated and innovative hybrid bachelor’s degree programs. having witnessed these turnaround stories, the for-profit conversion process has not been a bed of roses. take the case of Ashford University (iowa), purchased by for-profit Bridgepoint education in 2005. at that time, ashford had an enrollment of 300 students. today, ashford enrolls a reported 78,000 students and $216 million in annual profits. along with ashford’s exponential growth came allegations of wrongful admissions, staff incentivization, improper retention of federal financial aid funds, and decreased per-student instructional expenditures. and, ashford is not alone. the list of for-profit conversion targets seems to grow nearly every quarter. institutions like Daniel webster, waldorf, and the new england College of Business and finance have survived the Darwinian economic downsizing that has forced many similarly situated colleges to merge or go out of business. these institutions have been transformed by their corporate benefactors from endangered species to best-of-breed higher learning organizations. for more on higher ed ownership models, see the online version of this column at www.universitybusiness.com. —James Martin and James e. samels, future shock columnists, are authors of Turnaround: Leading Stressed Colleges and Universities to Excellence (Johns hopkins university press, 2009). Martin is a professor of english at Mount ida College (Mass.) and samels is president and Ceo of the education alliance. universitybusiness.com Future Shock Internal Security Breach at EMU IdentIty theft Is always a concern when large amounts of personal and financial information are stored. what about when that theft is from within? that’s what happened at Eastern Michigan University when two student workers allegedly stole sensitive information to share with a third party. walter Kraft, vice president for communications at eMU, says the university learned of the incident in early March, when department of public safety personnel were investigating an unrelated incident of a student stealing a laptop. he says the student employees—who are no longer employed by or students of eMU—worked in office positions where they had access to “information and a limited amount of student records.” the investigation is ongoing, and the university is working with federal authorities and the Irs to completely resolve the issue. the student workers took social security numbers from at least 58 students or their dependents. Kraft says the institution believes the information was taken so a third party could fraudulently file tax returns. eMU is taking steps to work with those identified as having their information stolen to address any issues with the Irs or through credit monitoring. eMU already has a rigorous background check system in place for student employees, but “as a result of this, we’re evaluating all of our systems that might apply to this situation to make sure we’re doing everything we can be doing to ensure something like this would never happen again,” says Kraft. Upon learning of the theft, Kraft and his staff immediately notified the campus community. a data security Breach Information portal was created online (www.emich.edu/securitybreach-march-2011). It features updates, a question and answer page, and information about what students can do to monitor if their information has been compromised. “we wanted to make sure that everybody was aware of this and knew it was happening so that they could let us know if they were in any way a victim,” says Kraft. —Kristen Domonell May 2011 | 11 http://www.emich.edu/securitybreach-march-2011 http://www.universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - May 2011

University Business - May 2011
Contents
Editor's Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Viewpoint
Money Matters
Human Resources
Community Colleges
Networks Freshen Up
Collaboration Station
Someone to Watch Over You
What's New
End Note

University Business - May 2011