49 2010 The Board of Directors, with the endorsement of the membership, adopts its second 3-year strategic plan Strategic Plan 2010–2013 & Membership Survey 2011 CCAS launches an online searchable resource, the Deans Knowledge Base Paul B. BELL, Jr. THE UNIVERSITY of OKLAHOMA I fear that the greatest threat to the future of liberal education in the US today is the rise of the autocratic presidency. Univer- sity presidents too frequently bring to office a personal agenda that values self-promotion, rather than promoting student learning and independent scholarship. In addition to the damage they inflict on their insti- tutions, autocratic presidents model a behavior opposite to that promoted by liberal education. If students learn that authority trumps critical thinking and due process, that questioning authority is both futile and dangerous, and that the way to get ahead is to uncritically support the leader, we risk producing a generation of graduates who are ill prepared to func- tion as citizens in a liberal democracy. 2009-2010 CCAS collaborates with the Council on Undergraduate Research and the College of William & Mary to offer “Creating a Culture of Research on Campus” Over 100 deans, faculty members, students and others attend the workshop in Williamsburg