Higher Education Underperformance, PreCovid19!

Higher Education is facing severe market challenges and threats to its survival. The challenges that higher education leaders and stakeholders are facing are being both masked and exasperated by the 2020 Pandemic. Understanding the reasons for underperformance before the 2020 Pandemic, is essential. Recognition of the pre-pandemic challenges may prevent college and university leaders from pretending that these challenges did not previously exist. The challenge in facing reality is that much of the influences emerge from public doubt in the value of higher education. This paper and presentation focuses on the influences that both feed public doubt and the negative outcomes that have resulted. This paper and presentation will also suggest where our leaders may need to place their focus, with the intentional goal of changing public doubt into public confidence. We must restore the belief that a college education is essential to the success of the individual as well as to the fabric of a democracy.c