The Cost of Producing Higher Education: An Exploration of Theory, Evidence, and Institutional Policy

Cheslock, John J.; Ortagus, Justin C.; Umbricht, Mark; Wymore, Josh

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-26829-3_7

Cited by 20 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Despite a decrease in U.S. college enrollment between 2012 and 2015, the proportion of students in OL increased (Seaman et al, 2018). Consequently, OL has become an important source of revenue for academic institutions (Cheslock et al, 2016) and an integral component in the long-term strategies of many colleges and universities (Allen & Seaman, 2016). The spatiotemporal flexibility of OL can increase student satisfaction (Chow & Shi, 2014), as well as increase institutional access for nontraditional students (Geith & Vignare, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student perceptions and performance in a traditional, flipped classroom, and online introductory soil science course

Ramírez

Teten

Mamo

et al. 2021

Journal of Geoscience Education

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Innovative didactive strategies such as online learning and flipped classroom can improve student performance while maximizing university resources and personnel. Assessing how students perceive courses designed using these strategies, as well as perform within them, is becoming increasingly important. An introductory soil science course at a 4-year land-grant university was taught (1) face-to-face (FTF, n = 110) with one 50-minute lecture per week and a 2-hour lab twice per week, using (2) flipped classroom (FC, n = 31) design in which most instruction occurred online with a 2-hour lab once per week, and (3) fully and asynchronously online (OL, n = 23). Students completed an end of the semester survey designed to assess perceptions of course utility, the utility of course components, and engagement level in the course. Proportional odds regression models and log odds ratios were used to assess how student perceptions of and performance in this course were influenced by teaching method or student class standing. Class standing had the strongest influence on responses to perception and engagement questions, while teaching method minimally influenced responses to perception and engagement questions. Furthermore, students with the largest odds of expressing potentially less positive perceptions -in this case sophomores -also had the largest odds of performing poorly in the course. These results suggest that FC and OL are viable options which can extend university resources, impact, and accessibility, and that student perceptions of college courses, which in this study varied by class standing, can influence their performance.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student perceptions and performance in a traditional, flipped classroom, and online introductory soil science course

Ramírez

Teten

Mamo

et al. 2021

Journal of Geoscience Education

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“…1 These institutions generated positive net revenue from their online programs and used it to cross-subsidize other programs and activities (Ortagus & Derreth, 2020 ). The positive net revenues associated with online programs relate to the presence of economies of scale and scope (Cheslock et al, 2016 ). The economies of scope limit the expenditure increase caused by the addition of an online program, while the economies of scale cause these new expenditures to be outpaced by new revenues once enrollments reach a certain threshold.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… 3 Brinkman and Leslie ( 1986 ), Cheslock et al ( 2016 ), Toutkoushian and Lee (2018), and Zhang and Worthington ( 2018 ) reviewed past research pertaining to economies of scale and scope in higher education. Previous research in this area did not differentiate between online and in-person education due to data limitations.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Concentrated or Fragmented? The U.S. Market for Online Higher Education

Cheslock

Jaquette

2021

Res High Educ

Self Cite

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As the financial challenges facing the U.S higher education industry mount, colleges and universities seek new activities that can improve their financial situation. Online education programs are often viewed as a promising option due to growing student interest and the substantial net revenue generated by early entrants that leveraged economies of scale and scope. The number of schools that can experience similar outcomes will depend upon whether the online market is primarily concentrated, with a small number of higher education institutions enrolling most students, rather than fragmented, with large numbers of institutions enrolling meaningful amounts of online students. We examine this topic by providing the first detailed study of market concentration in online education. We first introduce a theory from economics, Sutton’s model of endogenous fixed costs, to the higher education literature to highlight key dynamics that shape concentration levels. Using institution-level enrollment data for the population of Title IV postsecondary institutions, we then empirically examine concentration levels in online education. We find that relative to in-person education, national online enrollment patterns are heavily concentrated. The online market has a distinctive structure, consisting of a small number of large national providers and a large number of small local providers. Online enrollment patterns became less concentrated between Fall 2012 and Fall 2018 due to major enrollment declines of large for-profit providers. Concentration levels, however, plateaued by the end of the period due to rapid enrollment growth at large national nonprofit providers.

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“…In recent years, community colleges’ ability to fulfill their societally important mission has been challenged by declining enrollment and unstable state appropriations—the two primary sources of revenue. A rational response to these fiscal challenges would be to seek new sources of revenue, such as expanding distance education offerings that reach new markets (Cheslock et al.2016). However, research suggests the costs of establishing online programs pose a significant challenge for community colleges to successfully enter the online marketplace (Ortagus et al.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the relationship between community colleges’ participation in SARA and enrollment in distance education

Weeden¹,

Lee²,

Tandberg³

et al. 2021

New Drctns Community Coll

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With the growth in distance education programs and other interstate activities, community colleges increasingly need to be authorized by multiple states. State authorization provides the legal approval for postsecondary education providers to offer credentials and conduct related activities. Participation in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA) allows an institution to provide distance education to students in other SARA-member states by honoring its original state authorization through interstate reciprocity. For community colleges, SARA reduces the administrative burden to participate in distance education. This article examines trends in SARA participation and the relationship between this participation and distance education enrollment. Using NC-SARA and IPEDS data, we find that participation in SARA has grown rapidly, particularly among colleges with higher online enrollments. Distance education enrollments have likewise grown at community colleges, suggesting that SARA has successfully helped institutions maintain and grow multistate distance education programs.As open access institutions with a primarily local focus, community colleges are the postsecondary point of entry for many working adults, low-income students, and students of color who have traditionally been underrepresented in higher education (Edgecombe, 2019) as well as a primary economic driver for their regions (Jacobs, 2012). In recent years, community colleges' ability to fulfill their societally important mission has been challenged by declining enrollment and unstable state appropriations-the two primary sources of revenue. A rational response to these fiscal challenges would be to seek new sources of revenue, such as expanding distance education offerings that reach new markets (Cheslock et al.2016). However, research suggests the costs of establishing online programs pose a

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The Cost of Producing Higher Education: An Exploration of Theory, Evidence, and Institutional Policy

Cited by 20 publications

References 56 publications

Student perceptions and performance in a traditional, flipped classroom, and online introductory soil science course

Student perceptions and performance in a traditional, flipped classroom, and online introductory soil science course

Concentrated or Fragmented? The U.S. Market for Online Higher Education

Exploring the relationship between community colleges’ participation in SARA and enrollment in distance education

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