Michael K. Townsley, Ph.D., Senior Associate Stevens Strategy Prefatory Remarks Notices of private colleges closing or merging have become regular items in the press.  However, this sudden spate of bad news may not be entirely due to new problems or to the effects of COVID.  Rather, long-term

Current market conditions are leading colleges to be more aggressive in discounting tuition to compete for students who believe that there are only small differences in majors among colleges.  Stevens Strategy Senior Consultant Michael Townsley’s blog discusses these market condition and

Read Stevens Strategy Senior Consultant Michael Townsley’s take on the numbers behind the troubling demographic and financial challenges facing small, independent institutions.

While demographic, technological and industry changes have been pressuring schools for a decade now, the pandemic has forced many schools into weakened financial positions, especially as it relates to cash available to support operations. This paper examines what colleges and universities need

By Mike Townsley & Bob DeColfmacker, Senior Consultants Stevens Strategy, LLC Last year was the 50th anniversary of the Woodstock Music Festival and an appropriate time to reference Bob Dylan’s 1964 hit “The Times They Are a Changing.” The song was an anthem to the tumultuous 1960’s, and

Applicant Success Assessment (ASA) Dramatic Retention Results after Two Years! Contact Bell Cooper to learn how ASA improves quality and raises revenues 217-725-1808 | [email protected] What is the Applicant Success Assessment? The ASA tests students’ readiness for college.  Our

Michael Townsley author of a number of books on finance in higher education is working on a new book – Colleges in Crisis. The central theme of this book is that the massive decline forecast for prospective college students over the next decade will push many private colleges to and over the

In 2012, Stevens Strategy conducted a comprehensive strategic analysis project with Wilson College, which was experiencing serious enrollment and financial difficulty. Its total enrollment at the time we began our work with them was 762 students resulting in a 3 million dollar deficit. We

In the late 70’s and early 80’s, higher education faced an enrollment crisis similar to today’s, which was portrayed by pundits and researchers alike as a coming doomsday for small private colleges and universities. During the next decades these supposedly doomed colleges, led by the best

Stevens Strategy is pleased to announce this comprehensive report on the process of Strategic Planning authored by Inside Higher Education’s Rick Seltzer. We are humbled to be mentioned as an innovator in the use of strategic planning in higher education. Click to see Inside Higher Education’s