The Attainment Agenda: State Policy Leadership in Higher Education, by Laura W. Perna and Joni E. Finney (Johns Hopkins University Press; 308 pages; $49.95). Examines the role of states in promoting access to higher education and degree completion; draws on data on public policies in Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Texas, and Washington.
Beyond the Americans With Disabilities Act: Inclusive Policy and Practice for Higher Education, edited by Mary Lee Vance, Neal E. Lipsitz, and Kaela Parks (Naspa—Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education; 221 pages; $34.95 for Naspa members, $39.95 for nonmembers). Includes discussion of “best practices” in a wide variety of realms, among them housing, athletics, study abroad, and student conduct.
Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters, by Michael S. Roth (Yale University Press; 228 pages; $25). Traces more than 200 years of debates in America over the value of a broad-based liberal education versus a more vocational approach; defends the former.
Faculty Retirement: Best Practices for Navigating the Transition, edited by Claire Van Ummersen, Jean McLaughlin, and Lauren Duranleau (Stylus Publishing; 280 pages; $95 hardcover, $32.50 paperback). Draws on 15 college and university models that were identified, through a competition, by the American Council on Education.
Girls Coming to Tech! A History of American Engineering Education for Women, by Amy Sue Bix (MIT Press; 360 pages; $34). Focuses on the postwar period with in-depth case studies of Georgia Tech, Caltech, and MIT.
Leadership in Academic Libraries Today: Connecting Theory to Practice, by Bradford Lee Eden and Jody Condit Fagan (Rowman & Littlefield; 234 pages; $75). Topics include mentoring to promote greater diversity in the leadership of academic libraries.
Preparing to Study Abroad: Learning to Cross Cultures, by Steven T. Duke (Stylus Publishing; 162 pages; $95 hardcover, $22.50 paperback). A guide to help students adapt to new environments and gain intercultural skills.
Retention and Resistance: Writing Instruction and Students Who Leave, by Pegeen Reichert Powell (Utah State University Press; 144 pages; $24.95). Uses the perspective of a first-year writing program to explore ethical, pedagogical, and other issues related to institutions’ drive for student retention.
Shared Governance in Times of Change: A Practical Guide for Universities and Colleges, by Steven C. Bahls (Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges; 105 pages; $39 for AGB members, $59 for nonmembers). Evaluates three traditional approaches to shared governance among boards, presidents, and faculties, and offers an alternative.
Should I Go to Grad School? 41 Answers to an Impossible Question, edited by Jessica Loudis and others (Bloomsbury; 248 pages; $18). Essays in which people in the arts, academe, and other realms reflect on choosing whether or not to attend graduate school and how that decision has affected their lives.
The Strategic Guide to Shaping Your Student Affairs Career, by Sonja Ardoin (Stylus Publishing; 196 pages; $95 hardcover, $24.95 paperback). Draws on the experiences of 25 student-affairs professionals, with particular attention to the needs of people in early or midcareer.
A Toolkit for Deans, by Dianne Dorland and Patricia Mosto (Rowman & Littlefield; 142 pages; $55 hardcover, $25.95 paperback). Uses case studies, discussion scenarios, and other approaches to offer advice to both new and experienced deans.
Transforming Students: Fulfilling the Promise of Higher Education, by Charity Johansson and Peter Felten (Johns Hopkins University Press; 114 pages; $24.95). A study of transformational learning that draws on interviews with students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents at Elon University.