Bingham Fund

The forecast of a major contraction in higher education, especially among small, private liberal arts schools, has college administrators scrambling to find ways to save their schools. Some are implementing “signature programs” that organize and supplement the academic curriculum to add value to a student’s education. Signature programs are designed to support and enhance the educational experience of college students. The organizational coherence of these programs makes it easier to demonstrate the relevance of liberal education and the ways in which such an education can lead to success in the world.   At Transylvania University we take advantage of our size, location, and academic calendar to offer programs that tie courses to the real world. Our location, for instance, in the heart of downtown Lexington, Ky., makes it possible to connect students with alumni mentors through the 100 Doors to Success mentoring program and provide internships to any student who wants one.   We recently invested almost $1 million in digital liberal arts to ensure that our students understand, use, and critique technology to better make their way in the emerging digital world. Our academic calendar includes May term, during which students take one highly innovative course. May term courses are typically team-taught, travel courses, or integrated into our community. Each of these initiatives adds value to our students’ experience. And while they might qualify as “signature programs,” they do not constitute the identity of our school. They are not

Read “Signature Programs Alone Will Not Save Our Colleges”