Higher Education in South Carolina: An Agenda for the Future. Report to the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education.

Higher education in South Carolina was evaluated, with attention to college missions, financial resources for colleges, and the role of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. The development of higher education during the last 30 years and the state's role in organizing and managing the higher education enterprise are described. The climate for colleges in South Carolina and strengths and weaknesses of higher education in the state are also discussed. Included are nine recommendations to improve the quality of higher education in the state through systematic assessment at the state level and state-level policies. Thirteen recommendations to strengthen the Commission cover leadership responsibility, statewide planning, commission relationships with public and private colleges, and the agency's legal structure. Important trends likely to affect higher education are identified that concern population growth, income, racial composition, educational attainment, economic changes, and state revenues and expenditures. Also provided are comparative data for South Carolina's 33 state colleges as well as peer institutions in other states on: sources of revenue, expenditures by function, expenditure ratios, tuition and fees, enrollments by level, student racial composition, faculty salaries, and distribution of faculty by rank. (SW)