Colleges can avoid getting stuck with obsolescent and inadequate technology if governing boards can distinguish between the essential and the grandiose. This requires being clear about the purposes of the needed technology, being realistic about the outcomes, building full cost into budgets, involving faculty and staff in its use, and taking the…

Five public higher-education officials, including a former lawmaker, discuss how "citizen boards" of public colleges and universities deal with the inherent conflicts and ambiguities between the interests and ambitions of their institution and the financial, strategic, and public-policy demands of their state. They describe how they…

This article reports the findings of a Danish research council-funded project aimed at exploring a comprehensive package of management reforms in higher education instituted in Denmark since 2003. The reforms attempt to change not only the way institutions are governed but the very notion of democracy and engagement in higher education. In short,…

OBJECTIVE: The authors explored psychiatry clerkship usage of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Subject Test. METHODS: U.S. and Canadian psychiatry clerkship directors (N=150) were sent an 18-item questionnaire surveying evaluation and remediation practices. RESULTS: Of 111 questionnaires (74%) returned, 76 (69%) reported using the…

This article focuses on the relationship between principals and school governing bodies in South Africa. Although there are several different groups represented on the governing body, this article relates mainly to the role and function of the parental representatives. The parents have a majority on the governing bodies and therefore have an…

Government contracting has raised a collection of issues with respect to adequate oversight and accountability. This paper explores one avenue through which contracting agencies may achieve these tasks: through the governance practices of the contractor's board. Oversight and monitoring are a board's key responsibilities, and influencing a board's…

This paper presents the State Governance Action Report for 2007. Compiled in this report are state policy developments, including legislation, commissions, and studies, affecting the structure, responsibilities, and operations of public higher education governing boards and institutionally related foundations. Governance and governance-related…

As the United States moves toward becoming a "minority-majority" country, what more can--and should--college presidents and governing boards do to provide low-income students and students of color with a pipeline to high-quality education? Ongoing discourse about shifting demographics locally and nationally must be built into…

This document presents Volume I of the California Community Colleges Curriculum Standards Handbook, detailing legal and procedural requirements for college curricula. Following a prefatory description of the role of the standards in college accountability, section 1 provides state education codes related to the approval of community college…

Four papers address the changing roles of system administrators in multicampus public higher education systems such as the State University of New York (SUNY). In the first paper, by Joseph C. Burke, "Unity and Diversity: SUNY's Challenge Not Its Choice," the role of a public university system is defined as doing for its campuses only…

Signed into law on September 2, 1992, California's charter-school law has led to the approval of over 100 charter schools. San Diego City Schools (SDCS) was one of the first districts to sponsor charter schools, including the Harriet Tubman School, 1 year after the law became effective. This report provides a brief overview and summary of a case…

Signed into law on September 2, 1992, California's charter-school law has led to the approval of over 100 charter schools. San Diego City Schools (SDCS) was one of the first districts to sponsor charter schools, including the Harriet Tubman School, 1 year after the law became effective. This document provides a brief overview and summary of a case…

The governing board of Arizona's Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) has developed a strategic conversations format to ensure interaction with the college community and continuous quality improvement in the governance process. The use of strategic conversations facilitates communication with the community to help understand issues…

This report examines the roles and functions of state coordinating and governing boards of higher education. Data are from a study reviewing 20 years' worth of data and a current survey. After an introductory section, the first section analyzes historical trends which suggest modest growth in appropriations over the period. Section 2, based on the…

Seneca College is the designated community college for the City of North York, in the Greater Toronto Area, and is the most culturally diverse college in Ontario, with over 70 languages spoken by students. It also offers the largest business and among the largest applied science programs in Canada. In November 1995, in response to severe…