HIGHER EDUCATION · FOCUS AREA
Building
Academic Portfolio Realignment
You know some programs cannot continue. Saying which ones is the hard part.
We work alongside provosts, deans, and faculty leadership to evaluate which academic programs to grow, merge, sunset, or build, using enrollment, completion, and labor-market data, through a process faculty can see is fair. For institutions whose portfolio reflects decades of accumulated decisions rather than a current strategy, the result is a defensible set of choices, a path through accreditation, and a method the institution can run on its own next time.
ON A CAMPUS
Where does the work need to happen?
Majors with single-digit graduating classes that no one will put forward for closure.
Employer demand in fields the institution does not currently teach.
A program review process that reliably produces reports and no decisions.
ACROSS THE INSTITUTION
What this work looks like for the whole institution.
The full academic portfolio, with a repeatable annual review process attached so the work does not have to start over.
INSIDE A DIVISION OR UNIT
What it looks like for a single division.
One college or school deciding its own program mix within the institution’s direction.
HOW WE WORK
We listen, evaluate, and build.
01
Listen
We begin by understanding the institution’s academic mission, strategic priorities, and the perspectives of faculty and leadership involved in program decisions.
02
Evaluate
Academic programs cannot be evaluated in isolation. We examine how enrollment trends, financial realities, student needs, and institutional priorities connect to inform decisions about the portfolio.
03
Build
We work collaboratively with academic leaders and faculty to establish a transparent evaluation process that respects shared governance and supports informed, defensible decisions.
04
Support
We help translate portfolio decisions into practical next steps while establishing a process the institution can continue using to evaluate and adapt its academic offerings over time.
FROM THE RESOURCE HUB
Advancing Higher Education
Turning strategy into an integrated way of operating
University of Montana
Advancing Higher Education
From institutional strategy to execution
Montana State University + University of Montana
Advancing Higher Education
Building strategy through university-wide engagement and alignment
Montana State University + Northern Arizona University