Beyond Boundaries: The Faculty Role in Academic Innovation in Small Private Colleges

• In Event: 29.041 - Leadership and Legitimacy in Diverse Postsecondary Organizational Contexts

Abstract

Despite popular commentary portraying a sector in peril, many leaders of small independent colleges are proactively pursuing academic innovations, including programs and course delivery new to their institutions. While some institutions have folded, others have demonstrated creativity and resilience. Through case-studies of three private colleges, we examine the faculty role in academic innovation: how and to what extent they are involved, ways in which engagement shapes the content of innovation, and which forms of shared governance are emerging in this arena. Findings suggest the importance of campus leaders in enabling buy-in, faculty’s critical role in integrating technology, teaching, and learning, and the connection of loose clusters of stakeholders in codifying commitments through new committees that push forward innovations.

Authors

• Jarrett B. Warshaw, Florida Atlantic University

• Erin B. Ciarimboli, University of Georgia