A new study released by the Community College Research Center found that performance-based funding policies lead to greater use of data by colleges in institutional planning. Performance-based funding also encourages academic improvements and better student services. However, the policies can create unintended consequences, such as compliance costs, narrowing of institutional missions and grade inflation, the study found.
Paul Fain
Paul Fain, senior reporter, came to Inside Higher Ed in September 2011, after a six-year stint covering leadership and finance for The Chronicle of Higher Education. Paul has also worked in higher-ed P.R., with Widmeyer Communications, but couldn't stay away from reporting. A former staff writer for C-VILLE Weekly, a newspaper in Charlottesville, Va., Paul has written for The New York Times, Washington City Paper and Mother Jones. He's won a few journalism awards, including one for beat reporting from the Education Writers Association and the Dick Schaap Excellence in Sports Journalism Award. Paul got hooked on journalism while working too many hours at The Review, the student newspaper at the University of Delaware, where he earned a degree in political science in 1996. A native of Dayton, Ohio, and a long-suffering fan of the Cincinnati Bengals, Fain plays guitar in a band with more possible names than polished songs.
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Most Recent Articles
December 16, 2011
A committee of the Pennsylvania Legislature has recommended expanding the reach of two-year colleges in rural counties, and has proposed a new state institution that would include multiple campuses or learning centers. The Pennsylvania Commission on Community Colleges isn't sold on the idea, arguing that its members already offer the services the proposed college would.
December 15, 2011
Panelists at for-profit association meeting say industry should get ahead of accountability push by measuring student outcomes and making them public.
December 14, 2011
Texas Association of Business goes after community college graduation rates with a campaign that was influenced by Complete College America.
December 14, 2011
Chicago's community college system will join with industry experts to revamp occupational training to meet the skills gap in fast-growing sectors. The program, announced Monday by Rahm Emanuel, Chicago's mayor, will involve a curriculum redesign and the creation of new certificate programs by the City Colleges of Chicago.
December 13, 2011
Valencia College wins inaugural Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, another sign that foundations and lawmakers are emphasizing completion rates for community colleges.
December 12, 2011
The Internal Revenue Service has denied tax-exempt status to an unnamed foundation that provides scholarships to students who seek to enroll in college credit study programs. The foundation's board of directors own a separate online education company that provides test-preparation materials. As a result, the IRS determined that the scholarship fund operates in the interests of the for-profit company.
December 8, 2011
Citing severe state budget woes, community college leaders are pessimistic about the feasibility of the push to graduate more students, survey finds.
December 8, 2011
The Government Accountability Office on Wednesday released the latest in a recent series of reports requested as part of Sen. Tom Harkin's continuing investigation into for-profit higher education, with this one focused on student outcomes.
December 7, 2011
New research attempts to better compare the performance of for-profit colleges with nonprofits by controlling for differences in student populations, with largely negative results for the industry.
