Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are under immense pressure to become more efficient, reduce fees, and lower student debt, all while maintaining an expected high standard of academic excellence. This pressure creates the sense that HEIs must evolve to become more 'business-like' but fails to consider the unique expertise of their faculty and…

Purpose: The concept of distributed leadership (DL) has been widely advocated within higher education (HE). Yet, there have been few empirical investigations and little theory development outside Western contexts to date. This study presents a unique conceptualisation of DL and tests it empirically in India. Design/methodology/approach: This study…

Generally, discussions of shared governance in higher education do not include university committees. This study addresses this gap, through the lens of open systems, reconceptualized loosely coupled systems, and micro foundations. Using social network analysis, this study explores the documented governance networks of formal university committees…

There is considerable focus on finding effective governance approaches. This article examines experiences with using more collaborative approaches to developing new governance instruments in the context of higher education. The specific empirical case focuses on the introduction of multi-annual performance agreements between the ministry and the…

The impact of global systemic changes over 40 years in higher education (HE) have typically focussed on efficiency, cost-reduction and the needs of the economy. This has usually involved 'command and control' change processes and corporate accountability practices aimed at reducing university autonomy and bringing academics under greater…

Providing a sustainable distance education is paramouth of importance as a highly complex process requieing the involvement of various stakeholders. The purpose of this study is to investigate the criteria affecting the sustainability of distance education (DE) in higher education institutions, and to understand the differences in several internal…

As the higher education market becomes both more competitive and fragmented (as well as controlled through uncertain and changing regulatory regimes), and as those whom the higher education market serves become more discerning as consumers who apply proven customer behaviors within the market, universities must re-evaluate their internal…

Blended learning has emerged as a prominent feature in higher education over the past decade, aiming to enhance students' learning experiences and improve outcomes. It has been adopted at various levels within universities, with an increasing trend of institutional adoption. Despite its prevalence, scholars have expressed concerns about our…

Background: Under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, disabled people have the right to participate in all decisions that affect their lives, be they in any segment of legislation, policy or practice. The academic world is no exception. Methods: The authors are members of an inclusive academic team, including a colleague…

Professional staff, non-faculty employees who support the work of faculty and students, are one of the fastest-growing segments in the higher education workforce (Nadler et al., 2010; Mousavizadeh, 2021). Despite their expertise in a myriad of functional areas on a college campus, staff are not privileged as participants in the shared governance…

Character education has been a point of focus and research in K-12 education dating back to the 1990s. The work of integrating a character-forward framework in higher education is now considered a beneficial and impactful practice. One university has successfully completed the initial work of integrating a servant leadership framework in the…

Purpose: The study aims to investigate the state of higher education (HE) leadership research after the intensified focus on teaching and learning (TL) in academia. Design/methodology/approach: The authors clarify the use of key concepts in English-medium empirical journal articles published between 2017 and 2021 by analysing 64 publications…

Higher education institutions have come under fire for their perceived restrictive tactics and lack of diversity among students and faculty. This article dives into the possible synergy between anthropology and critical consciousness, drawing inspiration from Paulo Freire's seminal contributions. The major goal is to create a revolutionary…

This article explores the parallels experienced when pre-service teachers and those teaching multilingual students in elementary school design classroom spaces around the Right of the Learner to speak, listen, and be heard. We share examples of democratic commitments and shifts in our own understandings of the role of the teacher and professor. We…

Several studies have indicated that stakeholder engagement could ensure the successful adoption of learning analytics (LA). Considering that researchers and tech developers may not be aware of how LA tools can derive meaningful and actionable information for everyday use, these studies suggest that participatory approaches based on human-centred…