The chair of the board of trustees leads the board and facilitates board processes. He or she plays an important role in ensuring that the board effectively governs the institution and that trustees work together well. The chair is often perceived as the major spokesperson for the board. She or he is usually the primary point of contact with the…

This manual is designed for those working with conduct boards composed of students and/or faculty. This manual serves two purposes: (1) To provide the Adviser and/or trainer(s) with guidelines, philosophy, and information so as to better structure your conduct board program (or to create one); and (2) To serve as an actual model for a manual for a…

As public universities look to private philanthropy to produce the capital to invest in quality, it is important to think carefully about the implications for universities and their foundations. In this new reality, the role of the public university president is becoming much more than simply the institution's academic leader. Instead, a leader's…

Nowadays, most colleges and universities find themselves either planning a fund-raising campaign, engaged in one, or having just completed one. Entering a campaign may challenge a board to determine how best to organize itself to meet its long-term responsibility for fund-raising while mobilizing the broader cadre of volunteers needed for the…

Many higher education leaders are adopting measures that may contribute to better governance, but unless they also look at how the phenomenon of culture shapes the way their board members behave as a group, they will miss the forest for the trees. The best trustees and presidents grasp the paradox of assembling a number of highly competent…