Following advances for institutional research at the University of Illinois and University of Minnesota during the early twentieth century, interest in offices of institutional research picked up considerably in the 1950s. In particular, state boards demonstrated the power and relevance of institutional research for statewide planning by defining the extrinsic qualities of colleges and universities that determined how each fit together into a whole system of higher education to advance democracy as envisioned by the Truman Commission.
By the end of the decade, regional and national associations turned the instruments of institutional research to the study of the intrinsic qualities of higher education. Writing for the American Council on Education (ACE), A. J. Brumbaugh envisioned institutional research in a manner that moved the study of higher education from the analysis of outward characteristics of institutions typified by statewide research—enrollments, space utilization, and costs—to include the inherent qualities of institutions: goals, faculty, and curriculum. His 1960 white paper regarding the influence of institutional research on higher education brought to the fore the question of quality:
Quality is the key word in higher education today. How to maintain and improve quality under changing conditions and new stresses is a major issue confronting our colleges and universities. Boards of trustees, administrators, and faculties must make important decisions about goals, policies, programs, operations, and outcomes in the institutions for which they are responsible. To make wise decisions, data that only institutional research can provide are indispensable.
Ultimately, in the context of his prior writings on the problems of administration, Brumbaugh positioned institutional research as the most effective means to influence the quality of higher education policies, long-range planning, and administration. To learn more about the ACE’s early aspirations for institutional research in continuous improvement and institutional effectiveness, see my new history of the profession, Outsourcing Student Success, a history of institutional research and its significance for the future of higher education. Now available on Amazon.