The Knowledge Economy and Postsecondary Education

Americans have witnessed and participated in an extraordinary decade of economic volatility and educational reform. The National Academy of Sciences, through its Center for Education in its Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education of the National Research Council (NRC), recognized this tumult. It responded by appointing the Committee on the Impact of the Changing Economy on the Education System in fall 2000. The committee’s charge was to organize a workshop, held in May 2001, to explore how the various participants in the postsecondary sector were or were not changing their practices. Funding was provided by the National Science Foundation.

An underlying assumption of the workshop, albeit one that several participants debated, was that the economy was a powerful force influencing postsecondary education. As the indicators of U.S. economic vitality have altered during the preparation of this document, we have maintained our focus upon the postsecondary system itself, rather than attempt to explain the manner in which the U.S. economy influences higher education. That important and challenging issue we commend to another National Academy of Sciences group.

This report is the result of the committee’s deliberations, the discussions at the workshop, and most importantly, the papers prepared for the workshop, which form the body of this document. Such work is inevitably collaborative, and the committee is deeply indebted and appreciative of the participation of the authors and attendees at the workshop. We are also very grateful for the reviewers’ comments on our draft document. Finally, we especially thank Nevzer Stacey, our program officer at the National Academy of Sciences, and her colleagues, Linda DePugh and Margaret Hilton, for their attentiveness, incisive observations, and support. Michael Feuer, director of the Center for Education, gave us our initial charge, and we believe that this report helps to advance understanding of the dynamics of today’s postsecondary environments.