Beyond the Shadow of the Ivies: Key Differentiators for How Small Private Colleges Can Lead Higher Education Reform

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David Brooks' recent Atlantic article, "How the Ivy League Broke America" (December 2024), critiques how elite universities have shaped America's problematic meritocracy. While Brooks focuses on top-tier institutions, small private colleges are uniquely positioned to pioneer solutions. Their smaller scale, commitment to teaching, and deep community connections make them natural laboratories for reimagining higher education.

Why Small Colleges Can Lead Change

The current moment presents distinct advantages for smaller institutions:

• Their size allows faster implementation of innovative programs
• Their teaching focus already emphasizes student development beyond test scores
• Their community connections facilitate real-world learning opportunities
• Their missions often already align with broader definitions of student success
• Their regional focus helps us understand and serve local needs

Leveraging Their Strengths

Small private colleges can pioneer new approaches by building on existing advantages:

Personal Attention

Brooks argues that current systems fail to see students holistically. Small colleges already excel at knowing students as individuals. They can build on this by:

• Developing comprehensive student assessment systems
• Creating individualized learning pathways
• Building mentorship networks
• Documenting student growth narratively

Community Integration

While elite institutions often operate in isolation, small colleges are deeply connected to their communities. They can strengthen this through:

• Creating local partnership programs
• Developing place-based learning opportunities
• Building regional talent pipelines
• Addressing local workforce needs

Teaching Innovation

Their faculty's primary focus on teaching positions them to lead pedagogical reform. They should:

• Expand project-based learning
• Develop new assessment methods
• Create cross-disciplinary programs
• Build experiential learning opportunities

Action Steps for Small College Boards

Embrace Distinctive Identity

• Resist pressure to imitate elite institutions
• Develop unique value propositions
• Build on regional strengths
• Create distinctive programs

Reform Assessment

• Implement portfolio-based evaluation
• Develop holistic admissions processes
• Create new success metrics
• Track broader outcome measures

Build Local Ecosystems

• Partner with regional employers
• Connect with community organizations
• Create K-12 partnerships
• Develop workforce programs

Invest in Innovation

• Fund teaching experiments
• Support faculty development
• Create innovation incentives
• Document and share successes

Meeting the Moment

Small colleges face real challenges - demographic shifts, financial pressures, and changing student needs. However, these challenges also create opportunities. By leading reform in how they define and develop student potential, small colleges can:

• Demonstrate unique value
• Attract new student populations
• Build sustainable models
• Lead meaningful change

The Path Forward

Brooks shows how elite institutions' narrow definition of merit has damaged American society. Small private colleges can offer a different vision - one that:

• Values multiple forms of intelligence
• Develops whole persons
• Serves communities
• Creates diverse pathways to success

Rather than trying to compete in a broken system, small private colleges and their boards can lead in creating something better. Their institutions' strengths - personal attention, teaching focus, and community connection - align perfectly with needed reforms. The future of higher education may well be found not in elite transformation but in small college innovation.

Additional Readings:

• "Small College Imperative" by Mary Marcy
• "Remaking College" by Rebecca Chopp and Daniel Weiss
• "The College Stress Test" by Robert Zemsky
• "Demographics and the Demand for Higher Education" by Nathan Grawe
• "Alternative Universities" by David Staley
• "The Great Upheaval" by Arthur Levine and Scott Van Pelt

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About the Author: Robert (Skip) Myers, Ph.D., advises and counsels college and university governing boards and their presidents seeking to optimize and align their joint leadership performance.

Follow him at Robert (Skip) Myers, Ph.D.