Institutional policies and policy systems are vital to the well-being of institutions of higher education. While many institutions dedicate time and resources to the development of key policies, the establishment of a well-designed and well-functioning policy system is often neglected. We refer to the discrepancy between the importance of…

The International Studies in Education program at the University of Iceland illustrates how one university is responding to global trends in higher education. Through a case study we examined the significance of an innovative B.A. program, which is taught in English, aligned with values affirmed in critical multiculturalist scholarship, and…

The original mission of the state and land-grant university was to engage with communities to solve problems and improve the quality of life for the citizenry. Today most state and land-grant universities have moved far away from their original mission and are struggling to become engaged with the communities they serve. In this case study, we…

From 1980 to 1995, the University of Western Sydney at Hawkesbury (formerly Hawkesbury Agricultural College) in Richmond, New South Wales, Australia, pioneered an innovative undergraduate degree in Systems Agriculture based on experiential education, systems thinking, and adult learning theory. Today this program is in trouble and has reverted…

In this article we describe an educational leadership faculty's collective efforts to improve its curriculum by examining meanings, implications, and challenges of sociocultural identity differences for its graduate programs in educational leadership. We employed a case study method to examine the process and interim effects of faculty engagement…

At Queensland University of Technology (Australia), a cross-disciplinary faculty development network involves 13 teaching and learning interest groups representing 25 disciplines across 3 campuses. Groups meet monthly, using peer facilitators, to identify individual and collective areas of interest, reflect critically on teaching processes and…

A discussion of faculty development in colleges and universities examines the rationale for an expanded role for faculty development and reviews institutional structures and practices that support the personal and professional development of faculty, including faculty and academic development, employee assistance, and health promotion programs.…

A case study uses the concept of second-order organizational change to conceptualize the nature of change associated with infusing multicultural education within a large college of education. A four-year process is described, in which qualitative changes to the organization's culture occurred. Key elements of change included the values and norms…

The University of Manchester (England) and University of Georgia adult-education programs established a listserv, a computer-based community in cyberspace, to create international links and experiment with new technology. The project failed to develop a sense of community among participants, which had its origins in assumptions about groups in…

The development and five-year history of the University of Minnesota's environmental scanning effort, a strategic approach to institutional management, are discussed. Over time, scanning efforts became less theory-based and failed to become institutionalized. Inherent limitations in the organizational structure and culture of educational…

The recent experience of the business school at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in overcoming structural obstacles to curriculum development is discussed. Drawing on an automobile industry model for organizational change, the school used an interdisciplinary approach to curriculum design and implementation. Characteristics of the…