By James Irwin
Expanding college access to low-income students, and striking the right balance between academic pursuits and the needs of the consumer market are among the most important topics facing American higher education today, George Washington University President Steven Knapp said Wednesday at a panel discussion hosted by the Economic Club of Washington, D.C.
Speaking alongside Georgetown University President John DeGioia and George Mason University President Angel Cabrera, Dr. Knapp touched on trends and challenges in a discussion moderated by Economic Club President David Rubenstein.
Universities are challenged today to do a better job matching academic outcomes with employer needs, Dr. Knapp said, reiterating a position he has voiced several times in the past year—first at April's Milken Institute Global Conference and later at the May meeting of the GW Board of Trustees.
“Our challenges are to balance the need to preserve the core academic disciplines with a more nimble, flexible way of approaching our resource questions,” he said. “That means developing courses that are more market-oriented, but not doing that at the expense of preserving those core academic disciplines that are the base of knowledge.”
Among a host of topics Mr. Rubenstein brought up in the one-hour discussion—including sexual assault on campuses, fundraising and job placement—talk often centered on the biggest challenge in the industry, according to all three presidents: diminishing state funding for public schools.
“More than 80 percent of education in the United States takes place in public institutions,” Dr. DeGioia said. “We regarded education and research as public goods. In 1975, more than 60 percent of the budget for state universities came from the states. Today, it’s under 35 percent. That is unsustainable for us if we want to ensure the next generation will have the kind of opportunities we had.”
To still provide those opportunities, the three presidents said, public and private universities have increased fundraising efforts for student scholarships. They’ve also worked to expand college access to low-income students.
GW has taken several steps to expand access and lower cost, including implementing a fixed tuition program and increasing funds raised for scholarships (Power & Promise, established by Dr. Knapp in 2009, has raised more than $120 million in funds to reduce loan burdens). In July, the university announced it no longer would require most undergraduate applicants to submit SAT or ACT test scores, effective Aug. 1—another step intended to balance high academic standards and improved access.
“When I prepared for the SATs, my preparation consisted of sharpening a bunch of No. 2 pencils—that was it,” Dr. Knapp said. “Nowadays, families that can afford it take many hours of tutoring and prep courses. It’s really expensive, and it helps. So what was originally designed to be an instrument of equality is now an instrument of inequality because families that can’t afford those tutoring classes or don’t live in the wealthy school districts are not going to fare as well.”
Dr. Cabrera agreed. He referred to access as an issue “central to what we’re doing.” At George Mason, more than 50 percent of students are of minority ethnicity and a third are the first in their generation to go to college.
“They are a predictor but there are better predictors,” he said of the SAT as a barometer for student success. “Probably the best predictor is something as simple as GPA. SATs are a measure of cognitive ability and general intelligence. [But] there are lots of other factors.”
Asked to provide advice for prospective students, the three university presidents stressed finding the right fit—college and field of study. What really matters, Dr. Knapp said, is for a student to find a school and a course of study that enables him or her to enjoy “the excitement of discovery” and acquire skills to succeed in the workplace.
“Employers themselves tell us, to succeed, they need to think critically, to have the ability to work in teams, analyze and communicate,” he said. “They can find that in any field they enter into in any of our colleges and universities. It does not matter what the student majors in. It has to be something the student is excited about, and the most important thing to do is connect with faculty who will inspire them and open doors for them.”
