A miner's canary

Change Dynamics and Leadership in Technology Implementation by Polly S. Owen and Ada Demb

So one thing that the academic world continually faces is how to incorporate technology effectively with seemingly ever shrinking budgets. There is not an easy answer to this one. For community colleges, it's an even bigger dilemma as they have the burden of responding quickly to the community's work place demands. However, larger institutions can use this to their advantage by watching how the technical colleges do it. Just like the canaries that warned miners of impending danger, community colleges can serve as an indicator of what works and what doesn't to larger schools. Referring to community colleges, Owen and Demb state, "Their experimental programs utilize technology in a variety of modes with differential success. Thus, their experience is instructive for other types of institutions.

Never really thought of it like this. Maybe that's why I had access to "cooler" technology during my two-year degree.