Analysts argue small residential colleges must redesign academic delivery, faculty roles and cost structures rather than rely on auxiliary revenue to survive. The piece urges institutions to “own their model” by deliberately redesigning curricula, workload and shared services to preserve the residential undergraduate experience under enrollment and margin pressure. That strategy conversation arrives as institutions across the country continue program and personnel cuts—The New School and University of Iowa among those hit—underscoring the hard choices campus leaders face between sustaining core academic missions and short‑term budget fixes. Colleges are weighing program consolidation, shared general‑education models and targeted fundraising to stabilize finances without sacrificing mission.