M.Ed. (Educational Management) / The aim of this study is to determine the role of shared decision-making at colleges of education in Gazankulu with a view to developing an effective educational paradigm for shared decision-making for these institutions. In order to achieve this goal the following aspects will be investigated: - the opinion of various groups regarding the role of shared decision-making in colleges of education in Gazankulu; - the level of commitment on the part of the lecturers if they are involved in the decision-making structures of the colleges; and - the level of commitment on the part of students if they are involved in the decision-making process.

The integrative potential of the division for student affairs was investigated in this study using as the basis for assessment the six determinants for effective integrative units delineated by Lawrence and Lorsch. A review of related literature indicated that three of five of the determinants were at least partially, if not substantially, met by the division for student affairs. Student affairs was found neither to have influence based upon competence within higher education institutions nor operate within a setting of high total organization influence. Analysis of the data indicated that confrontation was not the primary mode of conflict resolution utilized in the southwestern multiversity studied, but rather, the compromise mode was ranked first by upper- and middle-level managers. The sixth determinant, then, was not met. It appeared that since three of the determinants were met and three not met, the potential for student affairs acting as an integrative unit was limited. Other data gathered through questionnaires, interviews, and factor analysis in this investigation suggested that there was a wide disparity between the modes of conflict resolution actually used on campus and those perceived as desirable in handling disagreements. It was shown that the modes were viewed differently in the higher education setting studied than in business or public school settings. An inquiry into certain personal and positional variables evidenced that they had little influence upon the modes used or considered most desirable.

In recent years special education administrators have frequently found themselves in conflict with parents of handicapped children regarding such issues as: (1) private school placement of handicapped children; (2) transportation of handicapped children; (3) the provision of related services for handicapped children; and (4) due process hearings requested regarding the evaluation and placement of handicapped children. The problem this study investigated is whether the power base used by the special education administrator to influence conflicts with parents is affected by the socioeconomic status of the parents, the race of the child and the parents, and/or the handicapping condition of the child. In order to examine how special education administrators use social power to influence conflicts with parents seven bases of social power were studied. The original five power bases developed by French and Raven (1959)--expert, referent, legitimate, reward, and coerci ve--were used, plus two additional bases--information power developed by Raven and Kruglanski (1970) and connection power developed by Hersey, Blanchard and Natemeyer (1979). In addition three variables (the socio-economic status of the parents, the race of the parents and the child, and the handicapping condition of the child) were examined through the use of scenario questions. The scenario questions were developed by the researcher and were tested to establish their reliability and validity. The study examined five primary research questions, secondary research questions, and a research hypothesis. While no definite pattern of responses emerged, it was found that (1) administrator's decision making appeared to be sensitive to the context in which it was made; (2) administrators relied on reward power to influence conflicts; and (3) administrators used information power to resolve conflicts with white, high SES parents. / Ed. D.

In 1977 the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges developed a Board-Mentor Program to assist college and university trustees to enhance the organization and performance of their governing boards. This study evaluated through survey research this program utilizing presidents and trustees who participated in the program over a three-year period. The data were analyzed to determine changes that occurred as a result of participation in the program and if the program met the purposes and goals for which it was established. Twenty-one institutions, public and private, located in thirteen different states participated in this evaluation. Presidents and trustees agreed that the goals of the program were important and participation in the program was perceived helpful in the realization of the program goals. A positive correlation existed between the importance of the goals of the program and the helpfulness of the program in the realization of the program goals. Presidents and trustees identified several areas where change occurred as a result of program participation, and suggestions for program refinarent and change were identified by respondents. The study concluded with six recommendations including the need for additional study of trustee development programs. / Ed. D.

The Quaker tradition of consensus decision-making provides a provocative approach to internal governance in Quaker related colleges and universities. Guilford College, a small, private, liberal arts college with Quaker roots in Greensboro, North Carolina, employs the consensus model in college governance. Guilford College recently used the consensual model while developing a policy on open source containers of alcohol, particularly small kegs of beer, in College residence halls. This research project of the consensual process at Guilford College used qualitative research methods and examined the extent to which the consensual process was actually employed in a particular policy making event. A written summary of the actual case was developed followed by a series of interviews with students, administrators, and staff. These interviews were targeted at assessing the extent to which consensus decision-making was used to create the policy permitting open source containers of beer in the residence halls. The research project findings indicate that Guilford College employs elements of the consensual model in student affairs policy making while there also exists elements of a more bureaucratic model. While not indicative of true Quaker consensus decision-making as indicated by the literature in this area, many of the anticipated outcomes associated with consensus decision-making are exhibited by the participants of this particular consensual process. The findings offer, for student affairs practitioners at colleges and universities, a provocative model of alternative decision-making in working with students. Additional research about the effects of consensual decision-making on student learning and personal growth would be helpful to student affairs professionals as they continue their work with college students. / Master of Arts

The goal of this research was to determine whether governance varied among institutions of higher education in the U.S. and how this Variation was related to the size of the institution, the nature of its charter, and a measure of its quality. The proposed model identified four governance types based on the dichotomization of faculty and administrative power. Relationships were hypothesized between governance type and three predictors: size, charter, and institutional quality. Data were gathered by telephone interviews, inquiries to organizations, and document analyses for 40 comprehensive colleges and universities. A three-way (2x2x2) ANOVA revealed no significant (alpha = .05) differences in relative faculty-administrative power when the institutions were categorized by size, charter, and quality, nor were any of the interactions among size, charter, and quality significant (alpha = .05). The chi-square statistic was used to compare the number of correct predictions to the number expected by chance. The chi-square was not significant at alpha = .05. The model was revised using the difference between faculty and administrative power to redefine governance type. The number of correct predictions increased, but the chi-square was still not significant at an alpha of .05. / Ed. D.

The administrator role of adult and continuing education is changing in some private four-year colleges. Among several variables contributing to this change is increased emphasis on expanding continuing education efforts. Yet additional resources for accommodating this growth has not been forthcoming, due in part to limited financial resources. In this environment, the administrator of adult and continuing education must use his or her time more wisely. This research identified the tasks adult and continuing education administrators performed, estimated the time they devoted to each task within a specified time category, and identified the priority the task had for the adult and continuing education administrator. Specifically, four research questions were addressed. These research questions were (1) What estimated amount of time do adult and continuing education administrators at private four-year colleges spend on each task they perform? (2) What priority do adult and continuing education administrators place on each task? (3) What is the relationship between the estimated amount of time expended on each task and the perceived priority of the task? And (4) Is there a relationship between selected demographic variables and the variable of estimated amount of time spent on tasks? The findings indicate that administrators spend the majority of their time on communication tasks while spending the least amount of time on staffing and staff development tasks. Also, a large variance of time existed among and between institutions surveyed. The tasks that received the highest priority rating by administrators were taks 7 (developing publicity and public relations campaign for adult and continuing education), 45 (handling student problems), and 46 (teaching adult and continuing education classes). Finally, there were high positive correlations between time spent on task and several demographic variables. Other demographic variables showed little or no positive correlations with time spent on task. / Ed. D.

Forty-seven of the fifty states had some form of state-level board for higher education in 1981. Critics have expressed concern that the level of those boards' involvement in institutional affairs has steadily increased, while others have observed that administrative costs at the institutional level have gradually risen. It is not known if there is a relationship between the cost of operation of state-level boards and their level of involvement in the affairs of the institutions under their purview; nor, is it known if there is a relationship between the cost of operation of state-level boards and the cost of administration at the institutional level. The purpose of this study was to investigate these relationships. The population for the study consisted of twenty state-level boards for higher education, eleven governing boards and nine coordinating boards. The population further consisted of 216 public, four-year bachelor degree and higher degree granting institutions located in twenty-three states, including Delaware, Vermont, and Wyoming which had no state-level board for higher education in 1980-1981. Seven variables were hypothesized as factors either influencing the cost of administration in public, four-year institutions, the cost of operation of state-level boards for higher education, or the relationship between the two. These variables were formulated with data obtained from a survey of State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) member agencies and from Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) financial and enrollment tapes. Pearson product-moment correlation and one-way analysis of variance were used to test for significance of relationships between pairs of variables. An analysis of each of the research questions was presented in textural and tabular form. / Ed. D.

This study was prompted by an interest in exploring ways in which the development of private higher education in Malawi could be more sustainable. It examines the challenges that private institutions of higher education face in different contexts and the underlying causes of these challenges. The aim of the study was to explore the emergence of private higher education (PHE) in Malawi, its management, development, the challenges it faces and the generative mechanisms of these challenges. The research is a case study of one of the earliest private institutions of higher education in Malawi. The institution is owned and operated by a Christian church organisation that has been operating a network of private primary and secondary schools and health centres since its establishment in Malawi in the early 1890s. Critical realism is used as an underlabourer for its stance on ontological, epistemological and ethical assumptions of reality and its views on agency and structure. Two theoretical frameworks - complexity theory and transformational leadership theories - are used as lenses to help make sense of the nature of social organisations and also as heuristic devices for organising and making sense of data. Data were collected using qualitative interviews, archival document content analysis and observation. Twenty participants were purposefully selected for interviews. The participants comprised a senior officer at the MoEST headquarters, proprietors, members of the top management team of the institution, administrative assistants, heads of academic and nonacademic departments, teachers and non-teaching staff and students. Abstracted data were analysed using inductive, abductive and retroductive modes of inference. The study established that the emergence of private higher education in Malawi was generated by a number of mechanisms. These include the need to survive the threat to socioeconomic development posed by global trends in scientific and technological issues that heavily rely on access to the knowledge economy; the need to respond to demand for equity and access to higher education; the need to carry out the mission of the Christian church; government’s failure to expand and widen access to higher education; and the agential need to survive economic demands. The research findings indicate that a critical challenge that the emergence of private higher education faced was the lack of adequate and efficient structures and systems in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to expeditiously process applications to establish and accredit, monitor and control the development of private higher education institutions. It was also found that the challenges that the private higher education faces include high level of authoritarian governance and management practices, weak institutional management and control systems and structure, secularisation, lack of adequate funds to meet operation and capital development costs, facilities and resources to support teaching – learning functions, learner support facilities and services and a critical shortage of appropriately qualified administrative and academic personnel. The underlying causes of the challenges include the perceived threat to personal power and survival; fear of apostasy and secularisation; cultural values, adverse socioeconomic conditions; lack of diverse sources of funding, ineffective communication skills; weak governance systems and structures; low level of self-control; unfavourable attitudes towards educational institutions and the need to restore equity. To make private institutions of higher learning more sustainable, the study recommends that governance practices be guided by clear structures, policies and guidelines in the interest of transparency and accountability. It also recommends that government works in close partnership with private providers, reviews unfair policies concerning government scholarships, subsidizes the cost of materials for instruction and infrastructure development, and provides technical assistance to prospective and active providers. Lastly, the study recommends that private providers form an association so as to share experiences and to collectively deal with issues of common interest and concern. / Adobe Acrobat 9.53 Paper Capture Plug-in

The purpose of this project was to develop and recommend a strategic planning model that can be used by music executives in their management of music programs in institutions of higher education. Specifically, the study sought to (1) determine the aspects which influence the planning process, that are unique to the administration of a music program in institutions of higher education, and (2) develop a model that incorporates the major concepts of strategic planning and that can be applied to the planning process in music programs in institutions of higher education.