Philanthropy in the Social World: Utilizing Organizational and Sociological Theory for Research on Higher Education Philanthropy

• In Event: 352 - Theory Section Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Theory Section Roundtables (one-hour). Table 01. Political Sociology

Abstract

In the last 10 years, expectations about the role of philanthropy and fundraising in higher education have increased. Notably, these expectations are based on normative assumptions and actual behavior that philanthropic organizations can enhance the capacity and performance of postsecondary institutions. Today, no institutions of higher education have survived without some form of fundraising or gifts for the institution. Every public and private institution is grappling with a philanthropic agenda both nationally and internationally. As financial aid support declines and tuition rates continue to rise, colleges and universities have grown much more reliant to increase philanthropic involvements of the wealthy to fund academic and social programs, to increase college participation and completion rates, and to build state-of-the-art facilities for quality teaching and research in higher education.

Consequently, this poster reviews the historical, sociological, and organizational overview of the practices of philanthropy as it relates to higher education. Specifically, this poster utilizes resource dependency theory and institutional theory in explaining how certain forces (e.g., institutional, personal, role, environmental) influence the allocation of philanthropic gifts to higher education. Two conceptual/theoretical frameworks were developed by the author to understand the inter-organization relations between higher education organizations and philanthropic organizations. The poster concludes that professional fundraisers (e.g., board of trustees, the president, development officers) role on securing major resources (e.g., financial, natural, physical) and private gifts within the organization and field level is the result of coercive, imitative, and normative conformity to institutional rule, institutional isomorphism, and normatively based decision making in higher education.

Author

• Roy Y. Chan, Indiana University