Dive Brief:
- Colleges and universities across the U.S. are considering whether privatizing housing and other facilities is the best choice, financially.
- Starting with data is key, and creating a realistic projection of future revenue helps plan ahead for reinvestment goals as well as profit for investors.
- When weighing public-private partnerships, administrators should consider related consequences such as those from reducing the benefits of scale systemwide.
Dive Insight:
Campus housing is one of the more attractive options for privatization in higher education. The university system in Georgia is offering a private company proceeds from its housing operations in exchange for overseeing construction of new facilities, maintenance of current ones, and renovation down the line. While other colleges have formed such partnerships, it has been on a much smaller scale — single buildings, for example. In Georgia, the partnership will last 40 years and, with the construction of 3,000 new beds, it will cover 12,000 beds total. Bigger projects offer the potential of greater returns for investors, which means more interest for colleges and universities.