Publications

By Michael M. Crow, David V. Rosowsky, and William B. Dabars

Issues in Science & Technology, Spring 2026

To respond to challenges in society, sustainability, and governance, universities must first deal with the mismatch between how knowledge is actually generated and what academia recognizes and teaches.

by David V. Rosowsky, Stephen M. Gavazzi, and E. Gordon Gee (2025)

Higher ed is not monolithic. It’s a vast and complex ecosystem where nuance matters. Yet, increasingly, the entire sector is being painted with a single, overly broad brush. This oversimplification undermines these institutions and weakens the social compact with the broader public that sustains them.

by Michael M. Crow, William B. Dabars, and David V. Rosowsky

Issues in Science and Technology, July 2025

Seventy-five years ago this summer, President Truman signed the bill creating the National Science Foundation (NSF), setting in motion an innovation ecosystem that has delivered unrivaled military protection, remarkable economic growth, and countless lifesaving advances. The creation of NSF inaugurated the proposition that universities are responsible for producing a “flow of new scientific knowledge to those who can apply it to practical problems in government, in industry, or elsewhere,” as Vannevar Bush wrote in Science, the Endless Frontier…

Response by David Rosowsky, In: Issues in Science and Technology, Spring 2025

Robert Brown’s essay reads like the scientific article it is and reflects the kind of thorough analysis expected from such a scholar-researcher. The fact that he was also a president of a large private research university adds both to his understanding of the need for such a study and his desire to offer more than a criticism but an alternative to the current (flawed) rankings system.

April 2025, Not Alone, Elsevier

Universities must figure out how to be strategic and purposeful during a time of chaos and uncertainty.

AGB Trusteeship magazine, Jan/Feb 2025

I am often asked, “What type of budget model works best for universities?” This is the wrong question or at least incorrectly cast. To get to the right questions, and the needed answers for any decision, we first need some history, some present-day context, and some insight into why, when, and how new budget models are designed and implemented at universities. We also need to understand the organizational, operational, and decision-making dynamics that characterize much of higher education in the United States today.

AGB Trusteeship magazine, Nov/Dec 2023

The Council on Higher Education as a Strategic Asset (HESA) will complete their report in the coming year. How are their discussions and final recommendations likely to be informed by past commissions and councils? This article puts this latest group’s work in historic context by looking at the efforts and outcomes of the Truman Commission and the Spellings Commission.

In this op-ed, vice presidents for research at two major land-grant universities, David Rosowsky (Kansas State University) and Peter Dorhout (Iowa State University) discuss the Farm Bill and need for investment in our nation’s agriculture research infrastructure.

AGB Trusteeship magazine, Mar/Apr 2023

As we enter the fourth year of the pandemic or the second year of the post-pandemic era, depending on your perspective, here are four things to look for from higher education in 2023—a refreshed look at what continues to be a critical time with as yet unmet challenges and unrealized opportunities for colleges and universities.