While academic governance does not produce teaching and research, it provides the conditions that enable them to take place. The principal academic governance body within universities, the academic board (also known as the academic senate or faculty senate), therefore plays a key role in enabling universities to conduct their core business.…

One pressing issue in libraries today is the censorship of information. This study applies Kurt Lewin's gatekeeping theory to examine the decision-makers as well as the different pressures and constraints that are at issue in decisions regarding challenges and censorship attempts that occur in public libraries. Through an in-depth case study of…

With all the trials and tribulations, the job of a university president is one of the most rewarding. Yet, like every other aspect of society, the academic presidency has changed over the last several decades. A surprise turn of events gave the author an opportunity to reflect on the "then and now" question. Having served as president of…

Advocates of corporate governance reform hailed passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002 as a long-overdue raising of the accountability bar for corporate directors. Although SOX, as the law is widely known, does not legally apply to nonprofit boards, it has profoundly influenced the way many trustees, especially current and former corporate…

A list of trustee responsibilities, as adapted from a private college's trustee handbook, includes suggestions for active involvement in decision making, self-education about the institution and issues, and participation in meetings. (MSE)

A reversal in the decline of strong college presidents is occurring, and governing boards are realizing their responsibility to set the stage for assertive, enlightened presidential leadership and then to support their administrations. (MSE)

A study was made of the campus governance experience at the University of California at Berkeley during the turbulent decade of 1966 through 1975. In addition to an overview of Berkeley's institutional mission and its structure of governance, the study considered the matters of: (1) whether dual jurisdiction (one for faculty and one for…

A condensation of a paper presented at a Phi Delta Kappa-Temple University Symposiu.

One of the problems in the governance of academic institutions is described as the presence of a complex network of committees with a set of powerful individuals. Powerful individuals emerge because of personal qualities and because some decision-making modes must be established for decisions that cannot wait for committees. (Author/MLW)

Cogovernance refers to the process of administrators consulting academicians, through committees of faculty members. Competitiveness, rapid change, and the uncertainty that arises from the absence of assured funding underlies the strength of American college presidents. In contrast to the administrative professionals, members of academic senate…

Role of boardroom table shape in college/university governing board decision making is considered. Boards are urged to consider whether boardroom table and room design accurately reflect institutional/group culture and whether they lead to information sharing and collaboration. A semicircular table design is seen as directing energy toward a…

From the late 1960s to the spring of 1970 there was an acceleration of anti-war protest and political movements. At Stanford University this period was characterized by controversy, deep divisions within the university community, disruption of classes, student strikes, and the presence of uniformed police on campus. In this environment of…

Schools across the nation are experimenting with new forms of decision-making intended to facilitate the restructuring process. To discover whether two of these new forms--school governance groups and formal affiliation with a restructuring movement--affect traditional patterns of influence and authority, the Indiana Education Policy Center School…

An examination of the activities of two state boards having jurisdiction over community colleges in Illinois determined that twice as much time and effort was devoted to control as compared to coordination; thus, a board with greater control powers may be necessary to handle competition among institutions within an education system. (JG)

The acrimonious disagreement over investment in South Africa is one sign of the collapse of the consensus on the role of a trustee. Some critics hold that trustees are not definers of the institution's good but merely the instruments by which the public's view of that good is carried out. (MLW)