With enrollment still struggling to bounce back from a downward trend, and closures and consolidations in the news, the need for innovative strategies in higher education has never been greater. Edge’s AVP and Chief Digital Learning Officer, Joshua Gaul, recently led a webinar to discuss these recent trends and what actions can be taken to navigate the evolving educational landscape. Whether an organization is looking to launch new online initiatives or enhance existing ones, employing strategies that build digital learning capacity can help boost enrollment and institutional resiliency and success.
A Closer Look at Campus Closures
During a span of time between July 2004 and June 2020, nearly 12,000 campuses abruptly closed, leaving many students unsure about their path forward to finish their education. According to research conducted by the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) and the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center who analyzed 467 of these campus closures, 78% were for-profit two-year and four-year institutions, and over 20% were non-profit two-year and four-year institutions. “Even prior to 2020, many of these institutions had operating deficits or thin liquidity,” explains Gaul. “The arrival of the pandemic exacerbated these issues and many colleges were forced to merge or close. The majority of these schools were smaller campuses with less than a thousand students, but many had over two thousand students before the pandemic. Around 70% of the students experienced an abrupt closure and over half of them did not re-enroll.”
Affected by a $6 million deficit and a drop in enrollment, Cabrini University was among the institutions that was forced to close. Founded in 1957, the University began with 43 students and offered four major programs. Growing to over 1,700 students and 30 programs in 2021, the institution later saw a decline in enrollment in 2022. Cabrini recorded a decline of approximately 1,000 students, or half the student body, in less than a decade, forcing staff cuts and course changes. These issues combined with the financial strain led Cabrini to officially close its doors in June 2024.
The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York closed in May 2024 after program cuts, a 37% drop in freshman enrollment, and a financial gap of over $11 million. Over the past three decades, the Board of Trustees at Saint Rose had tripled the size of the campus, spending more than $12 million to purchase 68 properties, and another $100 million to renovate and build new facilities on that land. As enrollment dropped, the private institution cut expensive programs, but the budget deficit continued to grow, and the college had to close earlier this year.
In the fall of 2012, Bloomfield College in New Jersey had 2,044 students enrolled, but that number had dropped to just over 1,000 students a decade later. The public college was recognized as the only four-year college that is a Predominantly Black Institution, Hispanic Serving Institution, and Minority Serving Institution. As the pandemic continued and Black and Hispanic populations struggled with the fallout, enrollment numbers continued to drop. In order to keep the campus open, Bloomfield merged with Montclair State University in July 2023.
“Mergers and acquisitions in higher education are not uncommon,” says Gaul. “For example, Northeastern University in Boston absorbed Mills College in California. Additionally, schools like Otterbein University and Antioch University announced a partnership, but not a full merger, as part of an effort to create a national university system with various shared services. If we look at the most common factors contributing to these closures or mergers, we see declining enrollment, demographic shifts, and financial instability.”
Gaul continues, “Many colleges and universities were facing financial difficulties even before the pandemic, and about one third of institutions were operating at a deficit in 2019. The pandemic exacerbated these issues leading to enrollment declines, as well as a questioning of the value proposition of higher education, which was probably the most damaging thing. An institution’s market position, how it’s perceived in its target markets, its financial position, and its ability to manage resources effectively are paramount in determining the institution’s future sustainability. And helps determine what type of investments and strategic decisions make sense for an institution.”
The Segmentation of Higher Education
According to journalist and author Jeffrey Selingo, there are six segments of higher education institutions, each facing different levels of risk following the pandemic:
- Powerhouses (3%): Globally focused, prestigious public and private institutions that are primarily focused on research and knowledge creation. Their top concerns include research funding and attracting top talented faculty and students.
- Elites (3%): Highly selected, well-resourced liberal arts colleges who maintain selectivity around undergraduate education. They are not as focused on tuition revenue and student demand, but more about their positioning within the job-focused world to prepare students with the training and advanced skills they need to succeed.
- Strivers (10%): Private and public institutions who are looking to reach Elite or Powerhouse status but are more dependent on tuition revenue or state funding to make that transition.
- Regionals (30%): Private colleges that are generally small, tuition-dependent institutions who are heavily reliant upon a student body who is regional, if not highly localized.
- Compass Institutions (14%): Regional public universities that are dependent on local student markets and state funding.
- Community Colleges (40%): Focused locally and on the adult student market and are increasingly offering four-year degrees. Well positioned to take advantage of a workforce-focused approach to higher education.
With the higher education landscape changing immensely in the last decade, institutions are tasked with creating strategies for building sustainability. “Today’s institutions will need to focus on three key areas moving forward,” says Gaul. “This includes improving organizational culture, enhancing digital infrastructure, and developing new educational and economic models.”
Driving Cultural Change
Organizational culture comprises values and behaviors that shape performance where institution leaders must identify problematic aspects of the current culture and understand what changes are needed. “Internal audits can help initiate discussions about cultural strengths and weaknesses,” says Gaul. “Self-evaluations can go beyond what HR requires every year to evaluate their staff and explore more in depth how an organization handles different aspects of its culture. Leaders play a crucial role in transforming unhealthy academic cultures and must clearly articulate the organization’s purpose to motivate engagement in the cultural change process. Changing culture requires acknowledging the need for change, identifying specific behaviors and values that need to shift, and building buy-in.”
“You can’t force a culture shift, it is through changes in underlying values and behaviors,” continues Gaul. “Creating a positive and productive environment is challenging, but it’s essential for unit performance and satisfaction. Oftentimes, getting an outside perspective can tell a story that you’re not used to reading. Through a service like Edge’s Enterprise 360 (E360) Assessment, an institution can gain a holistic look at the entire technology infrastructure and identify which processes, procedures, and policies may be standing in the way of scalability and survival. Through business process modeling and conversations with an entire team, we can tell a story that allows us to make informed suggestions on ways to improve your operation and digital transformation readiness.”
The E360 Assessment looks at every moving part of an institution’s technology ecosystem and pinpoints which medium and long-term changes could have the biggest impact along the digital transformation journey. “Edge can help the transition by providing the support of thought leaders and a research-driven approach to change management that puts people at the center of the process. While a change is a thing you do, a transition is a psychological step that everyone involved makes together, and we can help guide an institution throughout this evolution.”
“Today’s institutions will need to focus on three key areas moving forward. This includes improving organizational culture, enhancing digital infrastructure, and developing new educational and economic models.”
— Joshua Gaul
AVP and Chief Digital Learning Officer, Edge
The Need for Digital Infrastructure
In the 21st century, sustainability relies heavily upon technology as robust digital infrastructure enables higher education institutions to adapt to evolving challenges, enhance learning experiences, and maintain operational continuity. “Steps taken outside the walls of an organization’s data center can lead to greater strength and sustainability on the academic side as well,” explains Gaul. “To start, it’s important to monitor and measure digital system performance and track those key metrics like conversion rates, customer satisfaction scores, student surveys, and lead times to identify areas for improvement in your digital transformation journey. Each institution should explore how their tools are supporting them and evaluate current processes and technologies to determine which changes will have the biggest impact on their business operations.”
During an evaluation, institutions often find the tools and technologies they are using either overlap or are not being used effectively. “Oftentimes, schools find they have three different tools doing the same thing or are only using 30% of a tool’s capabilities,” says Gaul. “We want to help institutions invest in essential tools and systems and implement necessary tools like an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, customer relationship management (CRM) system, or a project management system that can help them compete in a digital age. In driving digital transformation at your organization, you will need to train employees on these new systems and tools and develop a strong organizational change management strategy that includes various training methods to ensure employee adoption and productivity.”
“Building a service management framework is key to providing system support and identifying and managing incidents effectively. In addition, an institution should implement robust security measures and prioritize data security by implementing proper protocols and authentication measures to protect against cyber risks and data breaches. Digital transformation is an ongoing process that requires continuous improvement, investment, and adaption, and Edge can provide support every step of the way.”
Adopting New Education Models
In the past, the college campus was a physical place where a student enters after graduating high school and leaves when a degree is completed. Over the years, the higher education experience has evolved and the parameters have changed. “The fiscal and democratic realities of today call for the development of pathways and services for learners throughout their lifetime; beyond just those four years,” says Gaul. “This doesn’t mean institutions must discard all the elements of their legacy model, but they will need to add new solutions and innovations. We look at a future where higher education has more flexible pathways and an immersive hybrid option may become more common. By mixing and matching in-person and online courses, students have more flexibility to pursue work, internships, co-ops, or undergraduate research off campus.”
“An immersive hybrid approach can turn the standard model of the student life cycle into something more progressive and innovative,” continues Gaul. “We will begin to see new credentials alongside legacy degrees that are industry recognized certificates that give students on-ramps into jobs before they earn a degree. By asking for input from industry leaders about the key credentials and skill sets they most desire, colleges and universities can help prepare their students more effectively.”
“Some schools are also offering a shortened track to a degree. For example, the University of Minnesota at Rochester offers a year-round, two-and-a-half-year bachelor’s degree program in health sciences in partnership with Google Cloud. Every student is assigned a coach, as well as a mentor from the Mayo Clinic, and gains research experience, a paid internship, and a digital portfolio to track their learning. This model can help cut down costs for students, while offering the same amount of courses and credits in a condensed period of time, helping them get out in the workforce sooner with real-world experience and expertise.”
Another growing trend seen in the higher education community is partnerships between colleges and universities and their local community colleges. Together they build programs where students explore academic options and complete core courses at the community college, and then later transfer to the state school for their junior year. “Lifelong learning is redefining higher education as a platform for continual learning, and new approaches to education, like a seamless transfer program, gives students greater flexibility and provides institutions with creative ways to improve their retention,” says Gaul. “To maintain relevancy and a competitive advantage, more institutions need to be open to building quality competency-based education courses and providing students with ongoing opportunities to gain business-ready skills.”
Gaul reminds institutions that no one education model will be the magic bullet for solving the higher education fiscal crisis, but diversifying revenue streams and academic models can begin to shift the legacy economic model for many campuses. “Higher education was already changing long before the pandemic and how students viewed education was evolving too. Institutions that were already prepared to innovate survived and are flourishing, while those that did not shift their model likely closed.”
“The faculty and students are an integral part of the transition, they are the lifeblood of your institution,” adds Gaul. “You must take their perspectives into account when pushing these large-scale changes. Academics should also always lead technology; technology should not be the one fueling the academic mission. Edge’s team of experts is here to help you drive digital transformation and provide insight into the complicated nature of the business behind higher education so your organization not only survives, but can stand out and thrive for many years to come.”
Looking to enable digital transformation and streamline efficiencies within your institution? Learn how the E360 Assessment can provide a holistic view of your current-state technology program and key steps for evolving toward a more integrated and agile future. Visit njedge.net/solutions-overview/digital-transformation.
