“When I’m on a date, if my date isn’t that into me, I keep talking about myself until she realizes how great I am.”
I made that quip to a room full of presidents, provosts, chancellors, and equally high-powered college administrators at the American Council of Education conference in Washington D.C., in March 2018.
It was in response to something I’ve heard for the past 30 years.
“If the public truly knew what great work we do, they would love us. We just need to do a better job at getting our story out.”
Oh, the public's challenge with higher education is that the PR isn’t good enough?
Fascinating.
Tell me more about yourself.
We Don’t Want You
Attitudes towards higher education are a mixed bag depending on whom you ask what. Some polls and research are here, here, and here.
I’m curious about messages colleges and universities unintentionally send and how that shapes public perception.
“You are not smart enough, not talented enough, and not good enough. We don’t want you. Go away.”
Colleges and universities reject people all the time. (While this is only true of selective and highly selective colleges and universities, that distinction tends to be lost on most.)
It’s what colleges and universities do. Not everyone seeking admission will be allowed in. It is what it is.
Knowing an institution doesn’t want you and doesn’t need you feels terrible. People hate it.
On top of knowing they are not wanted, many resent that tenured faculty get lifetime employment protection; there is anger that a college degree is a ticket to a middle or upper middle class lifestyle as it continues to become further out of reach; concern about culture war fights on college campuses; disbelief about the constant claim of poverty by public colleges and universities; and serious doubt about dubious claims that colleges and universities do everything can to control costs and keep tuition affordable.
Administrators think they can overcome all this if they just get a few stories in the news media about how different their campus is.
Fat chance.
This is not a problem of logic and facts. It’s a challenge of feelings.
When your spouse tells you they feel ignored, listing off everything you do for them to prove their feelings are wrong might end the conversation. But it does not resolve the issue.
Silence does not equal agreement or a healthy relationship.
Don’t Call Us
To add insult to injury, flagship campuses (and others) are often incredibly difficult for the public to engage with. They come across as arrogant and dismissive.
The attitude feels like, “Don’t call us. We will call you when we want more money.”
Just like people’s attitudes toward politicians are often skewed by their view of the U.S. Congress, all of higher education tends to get lumped together. Where there are a few bad actors, everyone pays.
We shouldn’t rule out people’s direct interaction with colleges and universities as impacting their view of the sector, either.
More than 62 percent of the adult population in the United States over 25 has had some or extensive personal experience with a college or university.
As of 2021, of adults in the U.S., 37.9% had a bachelor’s degree or higher, 10.5% had an associate's degree, and 14.9% had completed some college but do not have a credential.
Maybe they don’t love us for a personal reason.
A Politician Walks into a College Bar
In Colorado, nine individuals are elected to serve on the University of Colorado system’s Board of Regents. Nebraska, Nevada, and Michigan also elect higher education boards.
Electing regents is stupid, but that’s a story for another day.
I ran in 2006 and 2012 for an at-large seat on the CU Board, representing the entire state, like a governor. In 2012, I was the first regent to earn more than 1 million votes.
On the eastern plains that border Kansas and Nebraska, in poor agricultural counties that struggle with population decline, in ski resort towns with absentee multimillionaire mansion owners and struggling workers, to the incredibly well-educated college towns, urban dwellers, civic groups, and everyone in between—one thing was during my campaign was true everywhere with everyone.
People did not give a rat’s ass about me until they knew I cared about them.
I had to meet them where they were, listen to their needs and concerns, and when they got I actually cared, they would give me the gift of their attention.
Then I had to answer the obvious question: why should they care about a university they or their children didn’t or won’t attend, and no one they know has anything to do with it?
What is in it for them?
That is a fair question.
The message colleges and universities send based on their actions—not what they say—is that they don’t actually care about the public. They are too wrapped up in themselves and higher education games to give much focus to public service.
There are many exceptions to this, but they just prove the rule.
“Wait, Steve! What about this clinic? What about this outreach program? What about these ten great things these few professors do? We are not like those other places.”
To which I respond, “Honey, here is the proof that I don’t ignore you. Your feelings are wrong.”
We Need a New Framework
Communities formed colleges and universities so the institutions could serve them, not the other way around.
Without ongoing public support through state tax dollars, tax-free status, federally backed student loans, and federal research grants, most colleges and universities would cease to exist.
Actions, by what is done and by what is left undone, by too many higher education institutions give the impression that they owe nothing back to the public other than graduates and whatever research professors think is interesting.
To gain greater public support and help institutions thrive, there must be a commitment to community service.
Where to start?
Step 1. Ask.
· Develop a steering community that includes interested faculty. Faculty involvement at every step of this process is critical for long-term success.
· Do a thorough needs assessment of your community and state.
· Include qualitative and qualitative research and analysis.
Step 2. Review
· Look at other colleges and universities—yes, even those ones beneath you in prestige—that do community engagement well. What could be adapted for your institution?
· What do other nonprofits, philanthropies, or research tell us about best practices for community engagement?
Step 3. Brainstorm
· Get community (including government) and institutional leaders together with interested faculty.
· Where is your institution uniquely qualified to meet specific community needs?
· Are there resource centers or expertise an institution could develop to meet those needs if those are not already in place?
· How might this provide opportunities for student involvement through jobs or internships?
· How could research help address community issues?
· Where might mutually beneficial partnerships be developed to meet community needs?
Step 4. Plan and Fund
· Develop a strategic plan.
· Find internal and outside sources for consistent funding to ensure that the effort has long-term institutional support beyond any given president’s or chancellor’s tenure.
· Ensure that more than one college or university executive has this as a key part of their responsibilities.
· Work with faculty leaders to revise rules to include community service as an optional criterion for tenure and promotion. This is a critical factor for stronger community engagement.
Step 5. Execute, Review, Adapt
· Execute the plan.
· Use qualitative and quantitative measurements at set intervals to review efforts.
· Adapt based on feedback.
· Repeat.
This approach demonstrates—through action—your commitment to the community that brought you into existence and continues to support you.
That’s what love looks like.