Organizing a work of the new faculty senate, it is highly important to take into consideration all methods how to make decisions in the best way and appropriately grant the authority. The idea of faculty being marginalized is widespread nowadays; therefore, it is necessary to provide the faculties the decision-making guarantees and an adequate freedom.
The faculty senate at the representative committee of the university should be elected in order to create a cooperative work that can solve a number of problems within the working and decision-making processes.
Minor (2004) offers three conceptions or categories of the faculty senates such as fully collaborative, stratified and consultative. Analyzing work of the faculty responders, Minor indicates that 87% say about the importance and effectiveness of the shared governance as a key aspect of the institution’s value.
Only in case of the collaborative work the faculties can get freedom of decision making according to the current needs of the particular faculty.
Thereby, I think that fully collaborative model is the best fit for our institution. In this case, all groups will be involved in the process of decision-making and will be able to develop the university and the particular faculty in the most effective way appropriate for all members and groups such as governance, administrators, staff and students. Such collaboration emphasizes the institution’s value and identity, as the all groups are involved.
Collaborative model is based on the consultation on all policies and issues of the university’s development. According to the article Shared Governance in Colleges and Universities, shared governance as the set of practices involves the college faculty and staff in the operation of the institution (p. 4).
Such measure is necessary due to the very special types of the institutions as the place of integration of the ideas. Obviously, educational area requires the collaborative work.
However, on the other hand, many specialists say about an ineffectiveness of the vehicles that used in order to share authority. According to this position, it is necessary to organize a work of the faculty senates in the most productive and effective way, cooperating with the administrators and campus stakeholders.
One of the basements of the effective work of the faculty senate is a clearly defined mission statement which should include the precise program of the decision-making process. As we choose the collaborative model, the mission statement should be written by a committee of the senate’s members. After this step, the faculty senate will be able to establish his position in the university governance.
Development of the different arrangements by the faculty senate will help protect the mission, for instance, the status, freedom and independent voice of students and staff. Such process opens a number of perspectives. Thus, the short-term managerial and political consideration will get more freedom.
The professional staff will be able to provide the most appropriate and effective policy, make the correctives and improve the curriculum and research policy according to the current needs. In the frames of the faculty senate work, they will be able to select the academic colleagues and to discuss their works.
The benefits of creating a collegial institution will be found in the increasing of the level of understanding between the different communities and parts of the institution. The faculty senate will provide a wide opportunity to allocate the resources, to set the goals and to choose the priorities of development of the institution.
Collaborative work and consensus within the work of the faculty senate will provide the most effective functioning in order to develop the institution and make it competitive within the modern tendencies of educational system. The project of the faculty senate includes the election that should guarantee that the opinion of all members will be taken into account.
Thus, the election can be held annually and a term of each member should be three years. Initially, a number of the members can be 30 persons. According to the Task Force on Faculty and Shared Governance, this number of the members is the most appropriate for the effective work of the faculty senate (Task Force on Faculty and Shared Governance).
Nevertheless, a number of the members can vary according to the size of the institution and its current needs. In case of Kapplun State College, 30 members is sufficient number that can provide an adequate policy.
Concluding, it is important to claim that the collaborative model of the faculty senate is the most appropriate and effective for development of Kapplun State College. Such committee is able to provide the freedom for all groups and communities of the institution and involve them in the decision-making process.
The professional staff is able to select the academic colleagues and to discuss their works. It is difficult to overestimate the benefits of the collaborative work as all groups such as governance, administrators, staff and students get the opportunity to allocate the resources, to set the goals and to choose the priorities of development of the institution.
Reference List
Minor, J. T. (2004). Four challenges facing faculty senates, in Thought & Action SUMMER, The Nea Higher Educational Journal. Web.
Shared Governance in Colleges and Universities: A Statement by the Higher Education Program and Policy Council. (n.d.). Web.
Task Force on Faculty and Shared Governance: Recommendation for a Faculty Senate at Rice University. (n.d.). Web.