For NAU and other universities to continue to thrive, they have to rethink the way they conduct business—what they do and how they do it, says a nationally known expert on higher education.
Dennis Jones, president of the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems, says political leaders, employers and students are expecting more from universities, but funding remains constrained with state budgets suffering and tuition continuing to rise.
As a result, competition for students will become more fierce from other Arizona institutions as well as online and proprietary schools, Jones said.
“The key questions are what and how are we going to change, and how can we retain our core values in the process,” Jones said.
Jones will discuss “Rethinking the University: Fulfilling the Mission in a Changing Environment” beginning at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 1, in the High Country Conference Center.
The session, open to the campus, will be webstreamed. Individuals watching online can send questions to inside@nau.edu.