Amid controversies and budget difficulties and in a highly visible position, the African-American president of the State University of New York at Albany finds lessons for his current role in the diverse experiences of his past. One aim is to promote tolerance and diversity at all levels of the institution. (MSE)

Because the higher education outcomes assessment movement has gathered momentum, and because of its potential for good or ill, trustees must help presidents build on strengths and eliminate weaknesses of the process by being deliberate about institutional response, scrutinizing the literature, consulting experts, and persuading numerous groups to…

Principals who survive can ride the rapids of unexpected events. To succeed, new principals must establish trust among staff, deal with staff perceptions of the principal as chief decision maker, recognize cultural differences among schools, and discover opportunities for change. Above all, principals must giver teachers permission to be critical…

Problems generated by higher education institutional efforts to constrain faculty's instructional autonomy are evaluated. Given traditional administrative noninvolvement, such efforts can offend faculty expectations, leading to claims against the institution stemming from poor evaluations. Academic freedom values are examined as a heuristic for…

Fragmentation of power within colleges and universities makes educational programs the element of higher education most resistant to organized change. However, over time, persistent and thoughtful leadership including encouragement of academic entrepreneurship and creation of agreement can transform these programs, as illustrated by the ongoing…

A survey of 50 local education authorities in England and Wales found that support and training available to governing bodies of mainstream schools in the area of special educational needs are minimal or nonexistent, that governing bodies and governors are confused about their role in this area, and that school policymaking was left to teaching…

A college president emeritus and association official, a corporate officer, a faculty professional association officer, and a governing board chairman offer insights on how college boards, administrators, and faculty can change the ways decisions are made on campus. Topics discussed include use of deadlines, clarifying roles and responsibilities,…

Today's superintendents are unaccustomed to sharing significant power with others and are expected to educate all youngsters effectively. Superintendents' responses to differences with their boards can profoundly affect progress in school improvement. By stressing dialog over discussion, superintendents might keep their jobs without sacrificing…

A rationale is offered for the use of administrative portfolios to evaluate academic-administrator performance. Representative functions, skills, roles, and activities that could be used to define assessment criteria are specified, focusing on the evaluation of department heads at a public university. Items to be included in the administrative…

A study of 158 college presidents examined the relationship of eight leadership styles (integrator, net-caster, focused visionary, focused performer, prioritizer, dreamer, implementer, maintainer) and three college outcomes (enrollment growth, resource growth, quality improvement). Distinct patterns are identified and their implications are…

Gina Kranitz, the new chair of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) board of directors, the first from the community college sector, is profiled, and her plans for the next year, including several major initiatives for the association, are discussed. (MSE)

Outlines the principal's key role in mentor programs for beginning teacher induction: initiating the program, defining the needs of beginning teachers, selecting mentors, defining mentors' roles, providing training for mentors, staying personally involved with both mentors and beginning teachers, and evaluating the program. (SV)

Presents strategies from six schools and two districts that won this year's U.S. Department of Education Model Professional Development Awards. Some of their strategies include teacher collaboration to plan professional development; teachers as leaders of learning for themselves and their peers; external partners providing expertise and resources;…

Reports on the growth and effectiveness of community colleges, identifying 11 trends including increasing diversity, increasing demands for accountability, and increasing partnerships with businesses and other educational sectors. Stresses the importance of the community-college activities professional in such areas as recruitment, orientation,…

Confusion about the meaning of education makes truly educational leadership impossible. Education is a continuing effort to work at the worthwhile things in life, and educational leaders must bring communities together to discuss what is good and worthwhile, what kind of society they want to create, and what kind of education is consistent with…