The structures by which higher education institutions are governed are complicated and varied, depending on the nature, location, and mission of the institution. So-called “shared governance” is traditionally viewed as a foundational part of the necessary conditions for academic freedom, but, in many cases, shared governance is a thing of the past, having been replaced with control by boards and/or state legislatures, which have little investment in preserving these conditions.
At Texas A&M, a professor was fired and a dean and department chair were removed from their positions after external outrage resulted in direct pressure from the A&M board, ultimately also leading to the resignation of A&M president Mark Welsh.
In the aftermath of the murder of Charlie Kirk, boards moved to censure and remove faculty for actions that clearly constitute free speech.
The effect of how governing boards oversee and impact institutional operations is significant, but many, both inside and outside of higher education, have only a limited understanding of how these boards are constituted, how they operate, and how they might be improved to make institutions more responsive to the needs of their stakeholders.
Luckily, our “Academic Freedom on the Line” podcast, hosted by Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom fellow Vineeta Singh, has us covered. She joins in conversation with two experts who are actively working to improve board operations and interactions between boards, leadership, and faculty.
I learned a lot from this one. I think you might too.
A new episode of our special series “Academic Freedom on the Line” with the AAUP’s Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom focuses on university governing boards and their workings. Raquel Rall, Associate Professor in the School of Education at UC Riverside and Demetri Morgan, Associate Professor of Education at University of Michigan Marsal School of Education and CDAF fellow, join us to explain the differences between public and private boards, what an “advisory role” actually means, and how to create meaningful communication between board members and academic workers and community members.
Be sure to visit the website of the Center for Strategic and Inclusive Governance, Rall’s and Morgan’s new project, designed to equip higher education boards and leaders with research-informed tools for mission-centered decision-making. The website includes open-access resources and rapid-response guides bridging scholarship and practice. And you can submit suggestions for additional resources or areas of investigation!
Further Reading for the Board-Curious:
Boards Must Fight for Institutional Independence (opinion)| Inside Higher Ed
New national center supports higher education governance | UCR News
Listen to the rest of our podcasts here.
The views expressed in this newsletter and on the podcast are those of individual contributors and not those of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) or the AAUP’s Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom.
