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This introvert spent most of the past week at the ASU+GSV Summit, and I’ve been recovering ever since from all that people-time. But in the snatched moments between sessions, or during the boring ones, what was I reading?
Too much space, not enough astronauts
Gordian’s report on The State of Facilities in Higher Education for 2025 opens with an observation.
It is a complicated and, as noted earlier, messy time to operate a college or university.
Understatements aside, they note that declining enrollments and a shifting federal role in research funding are placing increased financial pressure on universities while also shaping the kinds of actions institutions can and must take to align spending with revenue.
Anyone not preparing already for this moment has a steep hill to climb.
The data show that some types of institutions have a steeper hill to climb than others.
This adds yet another layer to the data Phil has been sharing about the challenges regional institutions are facing, most of which fall into the baccalaureate and master’s categories. The Gordian report points out that many of these schools are still building new facilities in an effort to attract students, but it’s pretty clear that this approach needs a rethink.
All three types of institutions should also be giving serious thought to online learning as a way to manage space, whether because they’ve got more than they need, or, in the case of many doctoral institutions, not nearly enough.
