A case study of interinstitutional cooperation of three private institutions of higher learning in Abilene, Texas

The research problem was to determine and describe the historical development from 1906 to the present the formal and informal examples of interinstitutional and consortial collaboration of three private, churchrelated institutions of higher learning located in Abilene, Texas. The purpose of this case study was to formulate suggestions that similar institutions could draw on when trying to duplicate or improve comparable collaborative endeavors. It was assumed that knowledge derived from a case study of Hardin-Simmons University. Abilene Christian University, and McMurry University, may contribute to a better understanding of this and other similar interinstitutional collaboration.

The methodology consisted of established and accepted precepts of historical research and interviewing techniques. A timeline of interinstitutional cooperation and consortial endeavor among the three subject institutions was formulated using the historical methodology suggested by Gall, Borg, and Gall (1996). A questionnaire based on six research questions was also designed to elicit answers from 35 principal participants who were/are in some way responsible for the creation and evolution of the various consortial relationships and endeavors shared by the subject institutions.