University of Arkansas, Fayetteville ScholarWorks@UARK Theses and Dissertations 5-2013 Liberal Arts Colleges During the Great Recession: Examining Organizational Adaptation and Institutional Change Ashlie Junot Hilbun University of Arkansas, Fayetteville Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd Part of the Higher Education Commons, and the Higher Education Administration Commons Recommended Citation Hilbun, Ashlie Junot, "Liberal Arts Colleges During the Great Recession: Examining Organizational Adaptation and Institutional Change" (2013). Theses and Dissertations. 798. http://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/798 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UARK. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UARK. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES DURING THE GREAT RECESSION: EXAMINING ORGANIZATIONAL ADAPTATION AND INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES DURING THE GREAT RECESSION: EXAMINING ORGANIZATIONAL ADAPTATION AND INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in Higher Education By Ashlie Junot Hilbun Centenary College of Louisiana Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, 2006 Tulane University Master of Social Work, 2007 May 2013 University of Arkansas ABSTRACT Liberal arts colleges strived to adapt to environmental shifts at the turn of the twenty-first century and remain relevant in American society while the Great Recession of 2007 compounded their challenges and created new fiscal and enrollment burdens, which forced these institutions to confront paradigm-changing circumstances. In an effort to advance the historical perspective of liberal arts colleges and expand the organizational adaptation research base, the current study aimed to understand how private liberal arts colleges adapted during the Great Recession of 2007 by examining institutional changes at three private liberal arts colleges and their effects on the institutions’ operations. To fulfill this purpose, the study was guided by four research questions that studied the nature of the environmental pressures during the recession, the adaptive strategies employed to combat pressures, the effects of those strategies on the institutions’ operations, and institutional constituencies’ perceptions of these strategies. This multiple-case study analyzed data from 3 liberal arts colleges located in the southeastern region of the United States, which included 30 participant interviews, public and private documents, and observational field notes. The findings were presented in 2 parts - a descriptive case record of each institution and a cross-case comparative analysis of the study’s themes as they related to the study’s research questions. The findings focused on the challenges of decreased endowments and increased enrollment pressures; described an array of institutional adaptive strategies implemented in areas of fiscal management, academics, athletics, personnel, fundraising, and enrollment; discussed the changing operations of the role of the board, administrative approaches to leadership and decision-making, and faculty involvement in organizational adaptation; and analyzed perceptions of change that linked organizational effectiveness to leadership and institutional identity. The study’s themes were examined within the context of Cameron’s (1984) and Birnbaum’s (1988) organizational adaptation frameworks, which included the population ecology, life cycles, resource dependence, symbolic action, and cybernetics models. Finally, recommendations for future research, policy, and practice focused on issues of self-governance and institutional identity. The study’s investigation of the modern liberal arts college adaptation highlighted the prominence of both the external environment and institutional factors in its story of survival. This dissertation is approved for recommendation to the Graduate Council. Dissertation Director: ______________________________________ Dr. Ketevan Mamiseishvili Dissertation Committee: ______________________________________ Dr. Michael Miller ______________________________________ Dr. Michael Hevel ©2013 by Ashlie Junot Hilbun All Rights Reserved DISSERTATION DUPLICATION RELEASE I hereby authorize the University of Arkansas Libraries to duplicate this dissertation when needed for research and/or scholarship. Agreed ______________________________________ Ashlie Junot Hilbun Refused ______________________________________ Ashlie Junot Hilbun ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is no surprise that in the final days of writing my dissertation, I found myself at Mom and Dad’s kitchen table, writing Chapter Five, and completing the most ambitious requirement of my formal education at home. My parents, Mike and Janice, made a commitment decades ago to provide their three children with the very best educational opportunities they could offer us and they continuously reiterated and disciplined the value into our minds. At times, I am sure that their commitment was hugely costly and was seemingly unrewarding, especially when, immediately upon finishing one degree, each of us would enthusiastically announce our intention to re-enroll in school and pursue another degree. With the completion of my doctoral requirements and my sister’s near completion of hers, my siblings and I will hold a total of seven degrees from five institutions of higher education and the broad promise and security of an enlightened future. My parents never finished their own college degrees, but they have prized the value of education more than anyone else I know, and in my eyes, they are as much honor graduates as the three of us are. Mom and Dad, thank you for always making me feel like I could do it, especially when it came to my academic pursuits. I am grateful more than ever for the sacrifices you both made in the name of our educational opportunities. You, more than anyone in this life, have made me who I am. I love you. Six years ago, I met two people who I immediately thought would make perfect in-laws, so I convinced their son to fall in love with me – that was the best decision of my life from both an in-law and husband perspective. With them, I gained a second family, a special group of people – the Hilbuns, Willifords, and Ellis’ – who have unconditionally supported and loved me during the last six years, especially as I worked towards this degree that demanded more of Chris than I ever intended. Throughout my three degree programs, I have benefited enormously from a group of highly disciplined learners and teachers. Each one of these folks inspired me to seek greater meaning and each taught me how to fearlessly learn and how to enjoy it, even if just for the sake of learning. Consequently, they helped me discover some of my deepest passions in life. I’m immensely appreciative to my doctoral advisor, Dr. Ketevan “Kate” Mamiseishvili, for her focused and thorough guidance, and to my dissertation committee members, Dr. Michael Miller and Dr. Michael Hevel, for their support and collaboration during this entire process. And I’m especially indebted to Dr. David Stafford, my intellectual mentor for more than a decade now. Dr. Stafford was the first person to ever tell me that I was “doctor material” and he bet that I would be here someday. Dr. Stafford, someday is here, and I realize now what a special gift it is to know people who broaden your horizons of possibility. I am indebted to these four self- assured, intelligent individuals forever. And finally, there are a few people who do not fit neatly into any particular category in my life, but through God’s grace and my good fortune, I know, love, and deeply respect each of them. In some of my most unclear moments in life, both before and during this process, these folks joined my journey and boldly supported me intellectually, professionally, and spiritually, and led me to become more. Through their guidance, I learned to be better and I found new truths and new happiness. I am better because of each of them. To them – Clay and Betsy Eaves, Steven and Debbie Deas, Emily Williams, Dina Wood, Dale and Lisa Kimball, Pattye Hewitt, and Leslie Landeche -- and to our Fayetteville and New Orleans families - this success and so many others before it bear your mark on my life. Thank you for pushing me towards this dream. DEDICATION Most importantly, the publication of my dissertation is dedicated to my most valued friend and husband, Chris. Chris, only you and I know how much of this achievement is really yours to pride. You braved the dirty house, stale food, and lights-on-way-too-late as long as I did; and so many times, you cleaned, and you cooked, and you waited up for me, and I owe you big for it. After writing more than 79,000 words in this dissertation, I’m still lost for words when it comes to describing how much I love and respect you. Your humility humbles me and your steady and strong love makes me bolder and greater in everything I do. It is fitting that my most meaningful milestones in life have come with you standing beside me. Nothing in this life will ever make me as happy as chasing our dreams together does. Here’s to the next big dream. You call it. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION 1 A. Context of the Research Problem 2 1. A Shift in Prominence 4 2. Continued Relevance for Liberal Arts 7 3. The New Context of the Twenty-first Century 9 4. The Great Recession of 2007 and Its Effects on Higher Education 12 B. Statement of the Research Problem 15 C. Purpose of the Study 17 D. Research Questions 18 E. Definition of Terms 18 F. Delimitations and Limitations 20 G. Theoretical Framework 21 1. Population Ecology Model 21 2. Life Cycles Model 24 3. Resource Dependence Model 27 4. Symbolic Action Model 31 5. Cybernetics Model 33 H. Chapter Summary 36 II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 37 A. A Brief History of the Small, Private Liberal Arts College 38 B. Historical Decline in Liberal Arts Colleges 50 C. Financial and Operational Challenges 58 D. Challenges of Perception and Demand 63 E.