Massachusetts Higher Education Consortium

CONTACT:

c/o UMass, 505 East Pleasant Street
Amherst, MA 01003-9242
(413) 545-4887
www.mhec.net

Stacey Wikar, Acting Executive Director, Treasurer

DESCRIPTION:

The Catalogue includes this institution among our examples of excellence, not because it needs donations, but for its teaching points about philanthropy's working in partnership with government, and also about how this private initiative for public good has brought sounder management and cost-containment to higher education. In 1977, a purchasing agent at UMass-Amherst had a great idea, and philanthropically went well beyond his job description to implement it by creating MHEC, a self-supporting non-profit purchasing consortium for all six New England states' public and private institutions of higher education. The idea was simple: by collaboratively purchasing items commonly used by the participating institutions — e.g., laboratory supplies, paper towels, soap — economies of scale would kick-in, lowering purchase prices and eliminating duplicative contracts with vendors. Originally a project of the "Five College Buying Group," the plan was extended to more institutions so that today 95 are involved. Anticipated business volume for 2006 is about $200 million, and MHEC has netted, at no cost to parents and taxpayers, savings of more than half a billion dollars for its member schools! Further savings are anticipated as MHEC looks to the Internet to reduce costs and save time, while also saving trees.

(2002: CULTURE: Education: Formal: School-Related)