The latest issue of the NACADA Journal —the biannual refereed journal of the National Academic Advising Association—includes a review of We’re Losing Our Minds: Rethinking American Higher Education. This positive review describes the book as “more than a call to action. It is a steppingstone in the conversations that need to be occurring on the national and local levels in order to begin a cultural shift.” Read the entire book review online.

The July/August 2012 issue of Trusteeship magazine, a publication of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, features the article “Where’s the Learning in Higher Learning?” by Richard P. Keeling and Richard H. Hersh. In the article, the authors argue that the goal of graduating has displaced learning as the real purpose of college; expectations and standards of a rigorous education have yielded to thinly disguised professional training, while teaching and learning have been de-valued and de-prioritized; and significant institutional cultural change is needed to elevate learning in colleges and universities. Keeling and Hersh call upon board leadership to work with presidents and faculty members to put learning at the center of the institution’s business and to gather, report, and discuss evidence of change. The full article is available online to members of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges.

We’re Losing Our Minds — Rethinking American Higher Education, authored by Richard P. Keeling and Richard H. Hersh, will be released by Palgrave Macmillan on December 20, 2011, in paperback and hardcover formats.

Based on the authors’ long experience as faculty members, senior administrators, and consultants for more than 500 colleges and universities, the book offers a new, holistic analysis of the problems facing American higher education and offers not only candid, honest analysis but also sound recommendations for how institutions and higher education as a whole must change for learning.

“We’re Losing Our Minds” is the most recent of the many publications written or edited by the authors aimed at stimulating change for learning. Significant previous works include Learning Reconsidered (2004), Declining by Degrees (2005), Assessment Reconsidered (2008), and articles in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Education, The Atlantic Monthly, and other prominent national publications.

Brief Summary

America is being held back by the quality and quantity of learning in college. This is a true educational emergency. Many college graduates cannot think critically, write effectively, solve problems, understand complex issues, or meet employers’ expectations. We are losing our minds – and endangering our social, economic, and scientific leadership.

Higher education costs too much and should be more efficient. But the real problem is value, not cost, and financial “solutions” will not fix that. The only solution – making learning the highest priority in college – demands fundamental change throughout higher education. We need a national consensus demanding change for learning.

Click here for more information about the book.