Larry D. Lauer

On Monday I met with the executive editor of the Economist news magazine in London. Because it is so current and comprehensive those who work there still call it a weekly newspaper, and many international leaders will argue that it is the most influential business and political publication in the world.

My TCU John V. Roach Honors College classes and Bob Schieffer Communication College seminars have been enriched by “live” dialogues with this noted international journalist. We have “Skyped” him in to converse with students, and we have also visited with him in the board room at the top of the Economist building in London.

Today my discussion with him was about the future of higher education. He is responsible for the new media initiatives at the Economist as well as its annual publication, The Year Ahead. So I presented ideas from my new book The Transition Academy (CASE Books), and he made observations based on his daily immersion in the turmoil of international news.

When all was said and done we agreed that on-line education is improving and will establish itself as a convenient alternative for many students around the world, that residential institutions will have to combine new media enhancements and experiences with face-to-face dialogues in order to succeed, that all of higher education is rapidly becoming a global industry and every institution will have to adapt, and that “university advancement” is a misleading term for what might better be called “university business development.”

Advancement is a term that is intended to cover university fundraisng, alumni relations, strategic communication, marketing, and even government relations. I have even described it as including everyone involved with advancing the institution. But it has become misleading to many, and my meeting today at the Economist convinced me that as the industry becomes more global we really do need to find a better term.