For Trustees
Many of the problems that beset higher education, from political correctness to declining academic standards to runaway costs, are internal. Colleges and universities will not be able to solve these problems without outside help. Trustees are the key. Exercising final responsibility, trustees are in a position to provide a fresh perspective, a healthy balance, and an openness to new solutions. But they can only make this contribution if they are given the information and resources they need.
ACTA is working to revitalize trustee leadership as a force for higher education reform.
Institute for Effective Governance
Launched in 2003 by trustees from across the country, ACTA's Institute for Effective Governance (IEG) provides a range of resources and services to college and university trustees so that they can exercise their fiduciary responsibilities more fully and effectively.
Outlining Best Practices
In recent years, nonprofit governance has been under increasing scrutiny—and ACTA has been instrumental in outlining best practices for higher education boards.
For instance, in 2006, Congressionally-chartered American University came under fire due to scandals and conflicts of interest. AU’s president, now dismissed, was found to have squandered university money on French chefs and parties—while the board was asleep at the switch. At a Senate Finance Committee roundable, ACTA recommended that the president no longer serve on the governance committee, no longer have a vote on the board, and be regularly evaluated. The AU trustees approved these recommendations. We played a similar role in 2007 at Dartmouth College—in the course of highly-publicized struggles. In a memo requested by the Dartmouth Association of Alumni, ACTA condemned Dartmouth’s move to create a self-perpetuating board as counter to federal and regulatory calls for transparency and independence. Alumni later featured ACTA’s line of reasoning in a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal.
ATHENA Roundtable
ATHENA stands for Alumni and Trustees for Higher Education Accountability. Alumni, trustees, and education leaders gather annually at the ATHENA Roundtable to discuss critical issues facing higher education.
Each year, the Roundtable culminates in the presentation of The Philip Merrill Award for Outstanding Contributions to Liberal Arts Education. The award honors individuals that advance liberal arts education, core curricula, and the teaching of Western civilization and American history.
Trustees for Better Teachers
A multi-year initiative, Trustees for Better Teachers is aimed at addressing the disastrous state of teacher education in this country. Trustees are encouraged to play an active role in evaluating and requiring improvements in teacher education programs at their institutions so that teachers receive an education that is content-based, grounded in the liberal arts, and focused on knowledge and learning rather than ideology and attitude manipulation.
As part of Trustees for Better Teachers, ACTA has published Educating Teachers: The Best Minds Speak Out, a collection of exemplary previously-published articles exploring teacher training and suggesting alternatives to the status quo; and Teachers Who Can: How Informed Trustees Can Ensure Teacher Quality, a guide providing practical, step-by-step assistance to trustees who are interested in improving their teacher education schools.
Trustee Resources
Trustees need support and resources. ACTA has published numerous materials for trustees designed to bring authoritative insights on key higher education topics. Please see:
Trustee Guides - user friendly guides that outline issues facing higher education and provide a set of concrete policies that can be adapted to each college or university's needs.
Essays in Perspective - in-depth essays by higher education experts focusing on topics of interest to trustees.
Special Reports - various special reports on important and timely issues. Such reports include Intellectual Diversity: A Time for Action, The Hollow Core: Failure of the General Education Curriculum, and Governance in the Public Interest: A Case Study of the University of North Carolina System.
ACTA's Must-Reads - ACTA's blog featuring new and topical articles of interest.
Effective Trusteeship - Best articles showcasing ongoing issues in academe relevant to the work of boards of trustees published from 2004-2007.