ROPS 1996-1999

ROPS 1996-1999

1996

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Trust, Markets and Accountability in Higher Education: A Comparative Perspective

Martin Trow
1996

In recent years problems have emerged around the American system of accrediting colleges and universities - a peculiar system involving voluntary regional associations of colleges and universities, public and private, which appoint committees of academics to make visits to their member institutions and report first on whether they are reasonably decent institutions of higher education, and secondly, on how they might improve themselves. This paper explores these issues comparatively in the American and European contexts.

1997

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The Role Of University Of California Academic Senate In Admissions Policy: Establishing Working Rules

John Aubrey Douglass
1997

This policy brief was prepared for the University of California Academic Senate and provides a general outline of the future role of the Senate's Board of Admissions and Relations with Schools (BOARS) in setting universitywide undergraduate admissions policy. BOARS has the prerogative to act as the "lead agency" in this important area of educational policy, subject to the actions of the Regents, and recognizing the purview of the President and the Chancellors in coordinating the administrative process of selection and setting general enrollment limits, and the need to consult with...

1998

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Shared Governance at the University of California: An Historical Review

John Aubrey Douglass
1998

Two major features in the historical development of the University of California distinguish it from other major public research universities. The first is the university's unusual status as a constitutionally designated public trust -- a designation shared by only five other major public universities. The second is the University of California's tradition of shared-governance: the concept that faculty should share in the responsibility for guiding the operation and management of the university, while preserving the authority of the university's governing board, the Regents, to...

Planning New UC Campuses In The 1960s A Background Paper For UC Merced On The Role Of The Universitywide Senate

John Aubrey Douglass
1998

This brief provides additional information on the role of the Academic Senate in new campus planning in the 1960s. A previous report, “The Role of the Academic Senate in Tenth Campus Planning,” provided background information for the University of California Academic Council and the Assembly of the Academic Senate regarding the potential role of the Academic Senate in establishing UC Merced. The Merced campus is scheduled to begin instruction in the fall of 2004. This report is intended to provide contextual information for the Academic Senate’s UC Merced Task Force.

A Brief On Improving UC Intercampus Articulation: Creating A Model For Articulation And Matriculation Agreements

John Aubrey Douglass
1998

This brief provided a possible policymaking path for the University of California to would improve UC intercampus articulation, while also retaining the authority of the campus Divisions of the Academic Senate (which regulates course agreements), colleges, and academic departments to set standards for the acceptance of course credit. Two issues are discussed. One, an outline of the current difficulties for a student to be simultaneously enrolled in a course at a UC campus other than their "home" UC campus, and the need to improve this process in the future. And two, the possibility...

1999

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Biology at Berkeley, by Martin A. Trow

Martin A. Trow
1999

This paper is concerned with the reorganization of biology at Berkeley, begun in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and now well along. Key to the initiation of change was the appointment of a Chancellor and Vice-chancellor who were committed to the changes, and the enlistment of outstanding biologists already at Berkeley to design the reform and carry it through. The paper raises the following questions: what led to the momentous changes in this leading research university; what actually happened as a result of the reform; what the key forces were that made the reform possible; and...

German and American Higher Education in Comparison: Is the American System Relevant for Germany?

Michael Heyman
1999

This paper serves as an introduction to a conference devoted to a comparison of higher education in Germany and the United States and how the two systems cope with contemporary pressures and seek to take advantage of opportunities. Using the example of the University of California, it raises questions concerning how a higher education institution copes with growth while assuring, to the extent feasible, a number of desired outcomes related to student attainments, scholarship and research, and reasonable efficiency and cost among others.

California After Racial Preferences

Martin Trow
1999

This paper provides comments on William Bowen and Derek Bok's book, The Shape of the River, and the issue of racial and ethnic preferences in California higher education.

The Cold War, Technology and the American University, by John Aubrey Douglass

John Aubrey Douglass
1999

The translation of Sputnik from a scientific into a political event changed the dynamics of federal science and technology policy, and elevated to new heights the American research university as a pivotal tool for winning the Cold War. This paper discusses this significant shift in federal policy, its impact on America's research universities and scientific community, and its influence on the contemporary economy. Sputnik prompted a significant expansion in the training of scientists and engineers, and acted as a catalyst for large-scale federal funding for higher education. It also...

What's for Sale These Days in Higher Education: Two Stories, by Robert M. Rosenzweig

Robert M. Rosenzweig
1999

"What's for sale and what isn't?" The author has no doubt that we will see more corporate involvement in teaching and research. Universities will increasingly sell or rent to corporations those activities to which a dollar value can be attached that is agreeable to both sides. The financial pressures on universities and the value of what they do, as perceived by widening sectors of business, make that close to inevitable. The author, however, is dubious that many universities can be trusted to know the difference between what is marginal and what is central.

On the Challenge of Writing a University History: The University of Oslo

Edgeir Benum
1999

This paper discusses the task of writing university history. While recognizing universities as institutions with universal features, the author stresses that important insights may be gained by assessing carefully the significance of the local and national circumstances within which universities have developed. He further argues for an integrative approach - the need to illuminate the dynamics of change through studying the interplay between various spheres of activity in universities, as well as the interplay between the university and its broader social context. Finally, he makes a...

The Evolution Of A Social Contract: The University Of California Before And In The Aftermath Of Affirmative Action

John Aubrey Douglass
1999

This essay provides an analysis of the history of admissions at the University of California (UC), including the development of affirmative action programs in the 1960s and, more recently, the heated political battle over the use of race and gender preferences at the University. In an era of mass higher education, the debate over affirmative action has renewed a persistent question within democratic societies: who should and should not have access to a public university education? Two general themes will be discussed. The first reflects different stages in the historical development...