By Cam Houser. The entrepreneurial spirit at the university level is willing and eager: nearly 90 percent of young people believe that entrepreneurship education is important, according to the Young Entrepreneur Council. And with the advent of the internet, free access to resources, and lowered barriers to entry, students can now start companies with minimal capital. At 3 Day Startup, we help students start companies through our experiential education entrepreneurship programs. Through our work with 5,000 students at 45 schools across the world, we’ve realized that the university is an ideal startup platform. More...

By James Piereson and Naomi Schaefer Riley. Last week, Kenneth Griffin, the founder and CEO of the investment firm Citadel, announced a gift of $150 million to Harvard University to subsidize financial aid. It’s not only Harvard that’s back in the money. A survey earlier this month showed that giving to colleges and universities was back at pre-recession levels, with a record $33.8 billion in charitable contributions during the 2013 fiscal year, almost a 10 percent increase over 2012. Most of this increase was, according to the survey by the Council for Aid to Education, “due to the rebounding in the stock market.”
This is great news for higher education but bad news for higher education reformers who have been hoping that the financial crunch might cause colleges to rethink their operating assumptions. More...

By Laura Kiesel. The average rate of college tuition and fees in the United States has increased 440% in the past quarter-century, with an increase of 70% in just the past decade. There has been a lot of speculation about causes, and a report released this month by the nonprofit Delta Cost Project tries to shed some light.
According to the report, Labor Intensive or Labor Expensive: Changing Staffing and Compensation Patterns in Higher Education, the exponential growth of the higher ed workforce is at least partly to blame for the rising cost of college. More...

By Mel and Pearl Shaw. Colleges and universities look to alumni for financial support. If you attended or graduated from college you likely receive fundraising solicitations from your alma mater. Some colleges excel at engaging their alumni and raising money from them. Their programs have been built over generations: First-year students are encouraged to set alumni giving as a personal goal. Other institutions such as community colleges are newer to engaging alumni. Some small private and public universities also face challenges. More...

By Andy Metzger. College students juggling classwork and jobs to pay the bills were given a pep talk Monday by one of the lawmakers with the greatest sway over financial aid levels in the state budget.
"Don't hesitate to call upon your local rep, to call upon your local senator and let them know what's on your mind, and what's important to each and every one of you, and how you feel that they can make the state better," House Speaker Robert DeLeo told the students from area colleges.
He said, "It is my hope that upon graduation from one of Massachusetts's fine higher educational institutions you will choose to stay here in Massachusetts, and continue to be part of this incredible environment. And it is also my hope that the Legislature can continue to provide robust financial aid resources and economic investments to help make this goal a reality."
The students from Babson, Emmanuel, Merrimac and Newbury colleges - to name a few - were in the State House to lobby lawmakers for more funding. Read more...

By Kathryn Buschman Vasel. No one disputes that college affordability and accessibility are increasingly becoming an issue for students and their families. What’s not as clear is how to combat these problems.
“There is no skepticism that there are major flaws right now with the higher education system, everyone wants to increase access and reduce costs, but discerning why college costs what it does gets very complex very quickly,” says Debra Humphreys, vice president for policy and public engagement at The Association of American Colleges and Universities. More...

By Jonathan M. Brand. The destructive negative news about our higher education system keeps coming, but there is very little coverage in the national media about why colleges and universities might not be addressing perceived shortcomings as rapidly or comprehensively as students, their families, external organizations or the media wishes, or on what creative solutions might realistically exist. After all, a robust higher education system is critical for national economic competitiveness and our vibrancy matters for this country. More...