"What Works" Conference Governing Bodies of Higher Education Institutions: Roles and Responsibilities, OECD, Paris (24-25 August 2006)

The roles of higher education institutions are changing and in many countries their relation to central government is also evolving. Institutions are becoming more responsible for the development of their own strategies and for the management of their operations. Accountability, evaluation and corporate responsibility are now part of a process, which – to some extent at least – draws on models found in the private sector.

One area where corporate world elements are getting a strong foothold is in the senior management and governance of institutions. These changing patterns of governance form the framework for this seminar. The focus will be on top level institutional governance, where much has changed in the last decade. Key common elements have been a transfer of power to the Rector, Vice-chancellor and other leading administrative figures, and a loss of authority and decision-making power on the part of traditional participatory and collegial bodies. Increasingly, higher education and university boards and senior leaders are being appointed rather than elected.

Within this framework, the roles and responsibilities of the Governing boards are becoming more complex. Nowadays, in many HEI systems they have a majority of external representatives – from business, industry and regional authorities. Often the chair of the Governing board is no longer the Vice-chancellor but an external personality appointed by the Government.

• Welcome
• Programme
• Key note Address
  • Response to the Key Note Address

Conference Presentations

• Lessons from the Corporate World
• Building Trust with Stakeholders: the English Institutional Perspective
• Building Trust With Stakeholders - An English University Chairman’s Perspective
• Horizontal Dialogue - How to Avoid a Compliance Based Approach in Governance?
• The Effectiveness of Governing Bodies
  • The Effectiveness of Governing Bodies (PowerPoint Presentation)
• Different Models – Same Problems
  • Different Models – Same Problems  (PowerPoint Presentation)
• Roles and Responsibilities
• Governance of Higher Education Institutions in Australia
• Governing Bodies
• Higher Education Governance In and Among the United States
• Conduct of Governing Bodies
• Responsibilities of Governing Bodies in the United States of America
• University Governance
• Brief Summary of the Conclusions
• Workshops