Changing the Game : William G. Bowen and the Challenges of American Higher Education

**How a visionary university and foundation president tackled some of the thorniest problems facing higher education**As provost and then president of Princeton University, William G. Bowen (1933–2016) took on the biggest and most complex challenges confronting higher education: cost inflation, inclusion, affirmative action, college access, and college completion. Later, as president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, he took his vision for higher education—and the strategies for accomplishing that vision—to a larger arena. Along the way, he wrote a series of influential books, including the widely read __The Shape of the River__ (coauthored with Derek Bok), which documented the success of policies designed to increase racial diversity at elite institutions. In __Changing the Game__, drawing on deep archival research and hundreds of interviews, Nancy Weiss Malkiel argues that Bowen was the most consequential higher education leader of his generation.Bowen, who became Princeton’s president in 1972 at the age of 38, worked to shore up the university’s financial stability, implement coeducation, and create a more inclusive institution. Breaking through the traditional Ivy League demographics of white, Protestant, and male, he embraced equal access in admissions for women and men and actively sought to enroll Black, Hispanic, and Asian American students. To “increase the intellectual muscle of the faculty,” he used targeted recruiting and enforced higher scholarly standards. In 1988, Bowen moved on to Mellon, where, among many other accomplishments, he developed digital research tools, most notably JSTOR, and promoted racial diversity through the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. Attacking problems with tenacity, insight, and deep knowledge, Bowen showed the world of higher education how a visionary leader can transform an institution. "How a visionary leader, as provost and president of Princeton University and president of the Mellon Foundation, tackled some of the thorniest problems facing higher education. As provost and then president of Princeton University, William G. Bowen (1933-2016) took on the biggest and most complex challenges confronting higher education: cost inflation, inclusion, affirmative action, college access, college completion. Later, as president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, he took his vision for higher education-and the strategies for accomplishing that vision-to a larger arena. Along the way, he wrote a series of influential books, including the widely read The Shape of the River (coauthored with Derek Bok), which documented the success of policies designed to increase racial diversity at elite institutions. In Changing the Game, drawing on deep archival research and hundreds of interviews, Nancy Weiss Malkiel argues that Bowen was the most consequential higher education leader of his generation. Bowen, who became Princeton's president in 1972 at the age of 38, worked to shore up the university's financial stability, implement coeducation, and create a more inclusive institution. Breaking through the traditional Ivy League demographics of white, Protestant, and male, he embraced equal access in admissions for women and men and actively sought Black, Hispanic, and Asian American students. To "increase the intellectual muscle of the faculty," he used targeted recruiting and enforced higher scholarly standards. In 1988, Bowen moved on to Mellon, where, among many other accomplishments, he developed digital research tools, most notably JSTOR, and promoted racial diversity through the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. Attacking problems with tenacity, insight, and deep knowledge, Bowen showed the world of higher education how a visionary leader can transform an institution"-- Provided by publisher

How a visionary university and foundation presidenttackled some of the thorniest problems facing highereducation As provost and then president of PrincetonUniversity, William G. Bowen (1933-2016) took on the biggest andmost complex challenges confronting higher education: cost disease,inclusion, affirmative action, college access, and collegecompletion. Later, as president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation,he took his vision for higher education-and the strategies foraccomplishing that vision-to a larger arena. Along the way, hewrote a series of influential books, including the widely readThe Shape of the River (coauthored with Derek Bok), whichdocumented the success of policies designed to increase racialdiversity at elite institutions. In Changing the Game,drawing on deep archival research and hundreds of interviews, NancyWeiss Malkiel argues that Bowen was the most consequential highereducation leader of his generation. Bowen, who became Princeton'spresident in 1972 at the age of 38, worked to shore up theuniversity's financial stability, implement coeducation, and createa more inclusive institution. Breaking through the traditional IvyLeague demographics of white, Protestant, and male, he embracedequal access in admissions for women and men and actively sought toenroll Black, Hispanic, and Asian American students. To "increasethe intellectual muscle of the faculty," he used targetedrecruiting and enforced higher scholarly standards. In 1988, Bowenmoved on to Mellon, where, among many other accomplishments, hedeveloped digital research tools, most notably JSTOR, and promotedracial diversity through the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship.Attacking problems with tenacity, insight, and deep knowledge,Bowen showed the world of higher education how a visionary leadercan transform an institution.

How a visionary university and foundation president tackled some of the thorniest problems facing higher education As provost and then president of Princeton University, William G. Bowen (1933–2016) took on the biggest and most complex challenges confronting higher education: cost inflation, inclusion, affirmative action, college access, and college completion. Later, as president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, he took his vision for higher education—and the strategies for accomplishing that vision—to a larger arena. Along the way, he wrote a series of influential books, including the widely read The Shape of the River (coauthored with Derek Bok), which documented the success of policies designed to increase racial diversity at elite institutions. In Changing the Game , drawing on deep archival research and hundreds of interviews, Nancy Weiss Malkiel argues that Bowen was the most consequential higher education leader of his generation. Bowen, who became Princeton’s president in 1972 at the age of 38, worked to shore up the university’s financial stability, implement coeducation, and create a more inclusive institution. Breaking through the traditional Ivy League demographics of white, Protestant, and male, he embraced equal access in admissions for women and men and actively sought to enroll Black, Hispanic, and Asian American students. To “increase the intellectual muscle of the faculty,” he used targeted recruiting and enforced higher scholarly standards. In 1988, Bowen moved on to Mellon, where, among many other accomplishments, he developed digital research tools, most notably JSTOR, and promoted racial diversity through the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. Attacking problems with tenacity, insight, and deep knowledge, Bowen showed the world of higher education how a visionary leader can transform an institution. How a visionary university and foundation president tackled some of the thorniest problems facing higher education As provost and then president of Princeton University, William G. Bowen (1933–2016) took on the biggest and most complex challenges confronting higher education: cost disease, inclusion, affirmative action, college access, and college completion. Later, as president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, he took his vision for higher education—and the strategies for accomplishing that vision—to a larger arena. Along the way, he wrote a series of influential books, including the widely read The Shape of the River (coauthored with Derek Bok), which documented the success of policies designed to increase racial diversity at elite institutions. In Changing the Game , drawing on deep archival research and hundreds of interviews, Nancy Weiss Malkiel argues that Bowen was the most consequential higher education leader of his generation. Bowen, who became Princeton's president in 1972 at the age of 38, worked to shore up the university's financial stability, implement coeducation, and create a more inclusive institution. Breaking through the traditional Ivy League demographics of white, Protestant, and male, he embraced equal access in admissions for women and men and actively sought to enroll Black, Hispanic, and Asian American students. To "increase the intellectual muscle of the faculty," he used targeted recruiting and enforced higher scholarly standards. In 1988, Bowen moved on to Mellon, where, among many other accomplishments, he developed digital research tools, most notably JSTOR, and promoted racial diversity through the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. Attacking problems with tenacity, insight, and deep knowledge, Bowen showed the world of higher education how a visionary leader can transform an institution. Contents Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments Part I Preparation 1 Prologue “I Have Very Serious Doubts” about the Princeton Presidency 2 From Wyoming to Princeton “He Will Probably Turn Up as One of Our Leading University Presidents” Part II Princeton 3 Becoming Provost “Somebody to Handle a Lot of Important Duties” 4 Using University Governance to Manage Campus Tensions “A Most Astute Capacity to Judge What Was Needed” 5 New Man in the President’s Office “A Juggler Who Keeps All the Balls in the Air” 6 Building Intellectual Muscle “Making Princeton Stronger in Terms of Scholarship and Teaching” 7 An Initial Failure Grappling with Molecular Biology, “the Most Exciting Frontier of Science We Will See” 8 Inclusion—Gender and Race “Making the Place Much More Inclusive in All Respects” 9 Inclusion—Religion and Residential Life Helping Students “Feel More Included in the University” 10 Board of Trustees “There Was Never Any Broken Glass on the Floor” 11 Students “Cheerleader,” “Talent Scout,” and a Complex Legacy Entr’acte: Leaving Princeton for the Mellon Foundation Part III Mellon 12 Mellon “The Pace of Things, the Excitement of Things” 13 Shaping the Mellon Agenda “Perfectly Prepared to Take on Really Bold Things” 14 Books That Helped Define the Agenda of American Higher Education Part IV The Full Measure of the Man 15 Director and Trustee “Graced with a Seemingly Endless Supply of Practical Wisdom” 16 “President-Whisperer” “A Kind of Switchboard for Higher Education” 17 The Last Decade “As Many Good Days as Can Be Managed” 18 Afterword: The Bowen Legacy Abbreviations: Manuscript Collections and Oral History Transcripts Interviews Index