Dear Colleagues, What better way to celebrate a fortieth anniversary than with an extraordinary gift? The Institute of Higher Education has established an endowed professorship in honor of state Representative Louise McBee. Louise has been a superb colleague and a warm and thoughtful friend to the Institute over the years of her distinguished tenure at the University of Georgia and, for the last decade, she has championed higher education in the Georgia General Assembly (see article on page 3). It is an honor for IHE to have this new professorship in her name, and will be gratifying to welcome a new colleague when the professorship is filled in the coming year. But anniversaries are about more than just presents; they provide occasions for reflections on the past and visions of the future. This issue of the IHE Report does some of each. Although the landscape of higher education has changed significantly over the past forty years, I am pleased to report that the Institute for Higher Education has remained true to the original vision of UGA’s then-President O. C. Aderhold, of research on and service to higher education in the region, while growing and adapting to meet new challenges. The pages of this magazine chronicle the Institute at forty; let me highlight a few examples here: From its founding, IHE has involved faculty from multiple disciplines; IHE’s especial strengths in law are now central to the new Education Law Consortium (see page 3), which draws on IHE’s 35-year tradition of expertise and outreach in higher education law. IHE has extended its original charge of helping to shape and support developing institutions in the region; IHE faculty and students are now serving higher education worldwide. A recent delegation to Croatia (see page 8) is but one example of IHE on the international scene. As a land-grant institution, UGA is committed to public service through all its activities; the Institute has a long tradition of serving higher education through faculty development initiatives, among others. The Faculty Development in Georgia program is also turning forty this year; Associate Professor Libby Morris elaborates on the strengths of FDIG and IHE’s faculty development initiatives and the upcoming “State of the Art” conference (see page 4). The doctoral programs at IHE have continued to attract superb students from across the nation; we have just launched a new M.P.A. concentration in higher education, in collaboration with the School of Public and International Affairs (see page 7), and are beginning to explore possibilities for joint programs with the School of Law. IHE’s presence in the higher education policy arena remains strong, with an active program of higher education policy seminars (see page 12) and research. In this issue, for instance, Associate Professor Scott Thomas explores the implications for state higher education finance policy in the face of rapidly changing student demographics (see page 13). Also throughout these pages are images of Meigs Hall, the Institute’s home on the University of Georgia’s beautiful North Campus. We are privileged to have such a fine building—with state-of-the-art technology but retaining the elegance and character of an old academic building —in which to conduct our work. I hope that the glimpse of the IHE at forty in these pages will persuade you to join us in celebration of our anniversary at any of the lectures, conferences, and special events we have planned for the coming year; see page 20 for fall event listings, and check our Web site (www.ihe.uga.edu) for the full schedule of happenings for the year. IHE is enriched by friends and colleagues from near and far—we look forward to the next forty years of our work together in research, teaching, and service to higher education. Sincerely, Thomas G. Dyer University Professor and Director Type of News/Audience: 2004 IHE Report
