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Vulnerable, Fragile, and Endangered? Financial Rhetoric and Reality at Regional Public Universities
Author(s) -
McClure Kevin R.,
Fryar Alisa Hicklin
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
new directions for higher education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1536-0741
pISSN - 0271-0560
DOI - 10.1002/he.20366
Subject(s) - framing (construction) , accountability , business , finance , financial sector , higher education , rhetoric , cash , accounting , political science , economics , economic growth , linguistics , philosophy , law , structural engineering , engineering
Abstract Recent reporting and research have claimed that some regional public universities are vulnerable, fragile, and endangered. However, much of what we know about the financial conditions of RPUs is limited to cases of financial crisis that capture national attention yet fail to fully represent the sector. The purpose of this chapter is to more deeply and directly probe the financial conditions of RPUs based on several financial metrics from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), as well information gleaned from credit agencies, such at Moody's and Standard and Poor's, federal accountability systems like Heightened Cash Monitoring, and publicly available financial health assessments. Analysis of this data shows that while there are significant financial challenges and a small number of institutions face acute financial stress, framing the entire sector as imperiled is not warranted.