Do we have a choice about our visions?

The answer is – probably less than one may think. It would be completely foolish to dream big dreams without considering the two existential threats to educator preparation at state universities. One is the continuous downward budgetary pressures. The second is the increasing competition from for-profit, online, alternative programs. In California, we should also add various district-based and county-based preparation programs. While we are in a good shape now, the long-term trends look very worrying. You do not need the SWOT analysis exercise to see that. The defunding of public higher education is a national trend, driven not as much by politics, as by the economics of mass higher education. Keep in mind, we remain competitive only because of the public subsidies, and some limited brand loyalty. That is, we compete mainly on price. We tend to lose on convenience, the user-friendliness, and on marketing, and very often - on responsiveness to employers’ needs.

These two threats imply a certain strategy, and I don’t see how one has much of a choice about it.

1. We must learn how to make money, which means developing additional revenue streams. 
2. We must become more flexible, less bureaucratic, and friendlier to students. 
3. We have to become sophisticated marketers. 
4. Finally, we must participate in regulatory politics. If we allow significant deregulation or meaningless accreditation to happen, it may open the flood gates for low-quality competition. Because of the famous Akerlof’s “Lemon Law,” this creates the race to the bottom phenomenon, typical for non-experiential good markets. 

The last thing is too big for each institution; it is a cause for larger professional groups. The first three, however, are the responsibility of each college of education. No one is going to do it for us. Most visions I have seen deal with some sort of growth in reputation, like we will become a premiere institution, or we will be known nationwide, etc. I was thinking along the same lines. However, perhaps we should try something more pragmatic. For example, we can say that we will become financially secure, and have some money to invest in development. I think we can become known for being not just personally, but institutionally friendly to students. We should not proclaim the abstract goals of endorsing diversity and equity – everyone does that. Instead, we can say that our programs and logistics will be tailored for the needs and expectations of minority and first generation, as well as working adults. Finally, we can have a vision of developing a robust marketing machine comparable to some of our best-known competitors.

Perhaps I am missing something, but just want to offer this kind of more pragmatic, less pompous way of envisioning our common future here. I believe we should meet out key challenges head first, with all we've got, and that becomes the shared vision.