Enrollment Growth and Equity of Access: A Critical Analysis of the University of North Carolina's Strategic Plan
Abstract
The University of North Carolina System’s strategic plan contains initiatives to increase
access for low-income and rural students, improve student outcomes, and close achievement
gaps. A complete assessment of UNC’s strategic plan will consider increased enrollment
against the demand of the state’s economy, the cost of education, and institutional
resources. Enrollment growth carries the risks of lowering academic standard or oversaturating
North Carolina’s economy with college-educated workers. However, the low educational
attainment of the state’s underserved populations supports expanding access. A more
detailed investigation of demographics at each of the campuses is necessary to understand
the scope of underrepresentation within the system. The resulting calculations show
that in addition to underrepresentation, there is also unequal distribution of minority,
low-income, and rural students across UNC institutions. While the system has identified
a number of programs and methods for achieving its priorities, it is also worth examining
other models that may have application in North Carolina. In its current form, UNC’s
strategic plan is insufficient to drive state-wide improvements. The aims produce
only minimal gains, overlook important gaps, and lack the coordination between campuses
necessary to best utilize system resources. There is unmet need and significant opportunity
for innovation in North Carolina’s public institutions, but more ambitious goals will
have to be implemented to result in any meaningful impact.
Type
Capstone projectDepartment
Graduate Liberal StudiesPermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/18634Citation
Levitt, Jessica (2019). Enrollment Growth and Equity of Access: A Critical Analysis of the University of North
Carolina's Strategic Plan. Capstone project, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/18634.Collections
More Info
Show full item record
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Rights for Collection: Graduate Liberal Studies
Works are deposited here by their authors, and represent their research and opinions, not that of Duke University. Some materials and descriptions may include offensive content. More info