Whether they recognize it or not, virtually all colleges and universities face three Grand Challenges: Improve the learning outcomes of a higher education; Extend more equitable access to degrees; Make academic programs more affordable (in money and time) for students and other important stakeholder groups. These challenges are global. But, in a higher education system such as that in the United States, the primary response must be institutional. This book analyzes how, over the years, six pioneering colleges and universities have begun to make visible, cumulative progress on all three fronts--