Senior Leadership Teams and Team Leadership in Colleges of Education: A Descriptive Analysis

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 7:45 am - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Higher Education Governance and Leadership in Contested Times

Abstract

Senior leadership teams (SLT) are key decision-makers invested with authority and influence who work collectively to achieve organizational goals. This research provides a foundational descriptive analysis of college-level SLTs and team leadership from the perspective of deans of colleges of education. Deans play a critical role in structuring, composing, and leading the SLT. A national, cross-sectional, exploratory survey was conducted with deans of colleges of education. 143 deans completed the survey. The research demonstrates that most deans of colleges of education lead a senior leadership team and have constructed them using effective practices. The results demonstrate that deans play the primary role in performing transition phase team leadership functions and show evidence of sharing these functions with SLT members.

Author

• Kurt S. Sudbrink, University of Maryland