President Brand writes essay for new book

President Jonathan Brand has written the opening chapter in a new book titled “Making College Better: Views from the Top.”

The editor of the book compiled essays written by academic leaders who provide ideas on how to make college better through policies and practices.

In his writing he argues that “colleges and universities must dig deeper into learning goals in order to bridge the gap between a liberal education and professional preparation, graduate students with skills employers covet, ease the temporal disconnect between a dynamic external environment and the pace of institutional change, and make clearer the value of higher education for students, their parents, and employers.”

The chapter delves into the topics of the disconnect between higher education and families, the divide within higher education, the divide between the broad and focused, the disconnect between higher education and employers, and ends with a list of the foundational skills Brand says “could bridge the divide between the liberal arts and preprofessional education and prepare students to thrive in any number of settings.”