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Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business Models

Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business Models

Colleges and universities are under increasing pressure to align their educational offerings with workforce needs while maintaining financial sustainability. Workforce programs—particularly short-term, noncredit ones—play a critical role in meeting regional…
December 1, 2025

Recent Blogs

Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business ModelsFeaturedSustainable Business Models

Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business Models

Colleges and universities are under increasing pressure to align their educational offerings with workforce needs while maintaining financial sustainability. Workforce programs—particularly short-term, noncredit ones—play a critical role in meeting regional…
December 1, 2025
The Public Price Tag of Poor Credit Mobility in Higher EducationAcademic EfficienciesFeaturedStudent Success

The Public Price Tag of Poor Credit Mobility in Higher Education

As states continue investing in public higher education, new analysis from rpk GROUP reveals a costly and often overlooked inefficiency: poor credit mobility. When students transfer and their credits don’t…
April 15, 2025
A Time to be StillLeading Change

A Time to be Still

It’s noisy out there. Headlines blare the latest changes at federal agencies. Funding cuts are on the table at all levels. And everyone – everyone – has an opinion they…
April 15, 2025

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Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business ModelsFeaturedSustainable Business Models

Connecting Workforce Education Investments and Community College Business Models

Colleges and universities are under increasing pressure to align their educational offerings with workforce needs while maintaining financial sustainability. Workforce programs—particularly short-term, noncredit ones—play a critical role in meeting regional…
December 1, 2025
The Public Price Tag of Poor Credit Mobility in Higher EducationAcademic EfficienciesFeaturedStudent Success

The Public Price Tag of Poor Credit Mobility in Higher Education

As states continue investing in public higher education, new analysis from rpk GROUP reveals a costly and often overlooked inefficiency: poor credit mobility. When students transfer and their credits don’t…
April 15, 2025
A Time to be StillLeading Change

A Time to be Still

It’s noisy out there. Headlines blare the latest changes at federal agencies. Funding cuts are on the table at all levels. And everyone – everyone – has an opinion they…
April 15, 2025
The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: Why Institutional Outcomes MatterFeaturedStrategic Finance

The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: Why Institutional Outcomes Matter

Higher education institutions are facing myriad financial pressures and uncertainties. But financial sustainability isn’t just about balancing the budget—it’s also about getting to the right outcomes at lower cost.
April 1, 2025
Administrative Staffing in Higher Education: Understanding the ROI from Staffing GrowthFeaturedStrategic Finance

Administrative Staffing in Higher Education: Understanding the ROI from Staffing Growth

Administrative staffing is a critical piece of the financial sustainability equation for higher education institutions. While concerns about “administrative bloat” persist, the latest rpk GROUP report reveals a more nuanced…
March 25, 2025
Optimizing Instructional Capacity: A Key Lever for Financial SustainabilityFeaturedStrategic Finance

Optimizing Instructional Capacity: A Key Lever for Financial Sustainability

Higher education institutions are rethinking how they deploy faculty resources in response to shifting student demand and financial pressures. Managing instructional capacity—faculty staffing, course loads, and efficiency—is a key strategy…
March 18, 2025
The Financial Sustainability Equation: Revenue Diversification and Spending in Higher EducationFeaturedStrategic Finance

The Financial Sustainability Equation: Revenue Diversification and Spending in Higher Education

For colleges and universities navigating an increasingly challenging financial landscape, the ability to balance revenue generation and spending is more critical than ever. As enrollment patterns shift and costs continue…
March 11, 2025
The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: Getting the Story from the BottomlineFeaturedStrategic Finance

The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: Getting the Story from the Bottomline

Higher education institutions are navigating shifting revenue streams, rising costs, and the expiration of pandemic relief funding. Understanding metrics like net income and the composite financial index (CFI) is critical…
March 4, 2025
Taking a Moment to CelebrateLeading Change

Taking a Moment to Celebrate

Often in life, we are so eager to plan toward our next moment that we forget to stop and be present in the moment we are actually living in. At…
February 27, 2025
The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: A Deep DiveFeaturedStrategic Finance

The Financial Sustainability of Higher Education: A Deep Dive

Much of higher education is under financial stress. Institutions are balancing shifting enrollment patterns, changing funding levels, and increasing costs. While the impact of these changes to the bottom line…
February 25, 2025
Unpacking Program Demand: Exploring Enrollment Concentration in Academic PortfoliosAcademic Efficiencies

Unpacking Program Demand: Exploring Enrollment Concentration in Academic Portfolios

Across rpk’s work with over 200 higher education institutions, one thing has always held true: some academic program offerings demonstrate much higher demand from students.
April 5, 2024
Adult learners
Moving beyond the enrollment cliff: Lessons learned in scaling & sustaining adult enrollmentSustainable Business Models

Moving beyond the enrollment cliff: Lessons learned in scaling & sustaining adult enrollment

As institutions continue to navigate pandemic-related enrollment declines, a new challenge looms on the horizon.
November 29, 2023
Ready for your next academic portfolio review? See this decision framework firstLeading Change

Ready for your next academic portfolio review? See this decision framework first

By Katie Hagan and Charlotte Pierce Colleges and universities often look to their peers for insights and best practice when preparing to launch critical change management initiatives. This is especially…
November 9, 2023
Stewardship, sustainability, and student success: What we learned in ‘summer school’Sustainable Business Models

Stewardship, sustainability, and student success: What we learned in ‘summer school’

Be it the warmth or the reminiscence of childhood, summer naturally lends itself to the feeling of exploration. It is a season well suited to pushing boundaries, learning, and self-revitalization.…
September 25, 2023
April 2023 Wednesday Webinar
Higher Education’s Arrival at Strategic PartnershipsLeading Change

Higher Education’s Arrival at Strategic Partnerships

John McIntosh, managing partner at SeaChange, joined Rick Staisloff for the April 2023 Wednesday Webinar to discuss higher education’s arrival at strategic partnerships. SeaChange helps nonprofits apply quantitative approaches to…
July 25, 2023
Higher ed leaders discussing financial decisions
HEERF funding: A lifeline for higher education institutions, but a missed chance for reinvention?Strategic Finance

HEERF funding: A lifeline for higher education institutions, but a missed chance for reinvention?

The COVID-19 pandemic has left an indelible mark on the world, with U.S. higher education institutions significantly affected. In response, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES)…
June 21, 2023
aerial university campus photo
State ROI from higher education: The increasing call for systemwide changeLeading Change

State ROI from higher education: The increasing call for systemwide change

Change has arrived in higher education, with a focus on financial sustainability and ROI prompting a new set of questions for leadership.
May 31, 2023
Do less betterAcademic EfficienciesLeading Change

Do less better

How do we do less in higher ed, and do it better? It starts with truly understanding the ROI to our students, employers, institutions and state/systems.
April 27, 2023
How leaders can move from intent to action in higher edLeading Change

How leaders can move from intent to action in higher ed

Higher education is ready and willing to transform its structures to achieve greater equity and student success. Here's what it's going to take.
April 11, 2023
A black rotary phone with the receiver off of its hook
A proactive look at strategic partnershipsSustainable Business Models

A proactive look at strategic partnerships

As institutions begin considering the benefits of a strategic partnership, leaders should consider these key questions.
February 24, 2023