Academic governance and leadership are two inter-related concepts that set the tone and direction for the development of higher education at the system as well as institutional levels. This article examines the academic governance and leadership in Malaysian higher education by focusing on two national higher education strategic initiatives: the…

Quality assurance in higher education has been introduced in Vietnam to improve the quality of the entire sector. Academics are considered key players in the reform plan of the Vietnamese government. This paper discusses the development of the Vietnamese quality assurance approach in higher education reform and how it could be further developed to…

In contrast with that basic understanding of university autonomy, in most continental European countries, such as France, and also in Japan, the government has tightly controlled universities, in terms of both their organization and activities. In these countries, the concept of "governance" is often lacking, as institutions were not…

The centralization of authority in public higher education from a local campus to the multicampus system and from local governing boards to state mechanisms is discussed. Dissipation of staff time in meeting bureaucratic requirements and faculty uneasiness with centralized planning and long-distance decision-making are described. (MLW)

The European strategy of institutional self-regulation is a step back from the centralized control accompanying higher education's recent growth, requiring a new management approach, perhaps in strategic planning. Viewed through organizational theory, self-regulation combines two fundamentally different concepts, and a "new autonomy"…

Reviews the historical development of Alaska's community college system. Discusses pros and cons of central or unified v local or autonomous control. Concludes that the growth of community colleges as power forces overshadows the unified or autonomous school issue. (CAM)

A study was conducted to determine the location of authority in multi-unit two-year colleges. Inquiry forms listed 84 practices categorized as general (e.g., accreditation), business, curriculum, instruction, administrative personnel, teaching personnel, non-teaching personnel, research, services, student development services, and relationships…

Concerns arising from the substantial changes in Australian higher education in recent years are discussed, including system centralization, elimination of the binary system, institutional stability, underfunding, and system size. A new fee-based funding system is proposed as a means of raising revenue, improving quality, promoting efficiency, and…

Profiles state community college systems in terms of type of governing board, percentage of state versus local funding, number of institutions, and years in existence. Examines relationship of these traits to degree of centralization of governance structures. Finds systems with more than 50% state funding tending toward centralized governance…

The argument is advanced that tertiary education in Australia, which comprises three sectors--universities, colleges of advanced education, and colleges of technical and further education--is hierarchically structured. Although the colleges were proposed to be of comparable status to universities, the new colleges of advanced education, which have…

In a discussion of the organizational and presidential functions of the community college, four major influences forcing administrative changes are indicated: (1) the usurpation by governing boards of administrative functions; (2) increasing state and federal control with consequent movement toward centralized authority; (3) collective bargaining,…

The British tradition of institutional self-steering in higher education is considered along with possible applications to the West German higher education system. The objective is to identify an ideal self-steering system and an effective organizational decision-making structure for West Germany. Financial retrenchment in German higher education…

The role of institutional self-evaluation is considered in the context of transition from central regulation to self-regulation in various higher education systems in Europe. A distinction is made between external steering, where regulations and decisions are made by a central state authority, to self-steering, where decisions and regulations are…

A study is presented to determine (1) where people influential in public university governance believe various typical decisions are being made and (2) where they believe those decisions should be made. The kinds of issues that bring about most disagreement as to proper authority in governance and administration are identified. Centralization of…

Four articles on changing governance patterns of state colleges and universities are presented. In "State Control vs. Campus Autonomy: A Struggle for Balance," Donald E. Walters discusses the distribution of power in Illinois'"system of systems" governance structure. In Illinois several multi-campus university systems coexist;…