Understanding Authority in Higher Education

Dean O. Smith has been a professor of physiology for thirty-seven years at the University of Wisconsin – Madison (twenty years), the University of Hawaii (eleven years), and Texas Tech University (six years). For twenty-two of those years, he was in the higher administration as an associate vice president for research, a vice president for research, an executive vice chancellor, and a system senior vice president. Over the years, he has published 135 scientific articles and a definitive book on university research management. He is now professor emeritus at the University of Hawaii.

• PREFACECHAPTER 1 – ORGANIZATIONAL AUTHORITYAuthority in AcademiaAuthority DefinedAcceptance of AuthorityModulation of Authority by External FactorsDelegation of AuthorityRescission of Delegated AuthorityResponsibility and AccountabilityChain of CommandOrganization Charts: Line and Staff AuthorityAuthority in Agency LawUniversity Type: Private or PublicObscured Limits of AuthoritySummaryNotesCHAPTER 2 – SHARED AUTHORITYThe Meaning of Shared AuthorityConsultative AuthorityShared GovernanceLimited Rights to ConsultationJurisdiction of Shared GovernanceBreakdown of Shared Governance: Censures and SanctionsRefusal to Share AuthorityFailure to Accept ResponsibilitySummaryNotesCHAPTER 3 – LOYALTYThe Nature of LoyaltyLoyalty OathsDuty of LoyaltyLoyalty to the EmployerFamilial LoyaltyPolitical Campaign ContributionsPolitical EndorsementsPower BaseSummaryNotesCHAPTER 4 – LEGAL LIMITS OF AUTHORITYLegal Rights and ResponsibilitiesThe ConstitutionDue ProcessDeprivation of Life, Liberty and Property InterestsTitle IX AthleticsSexual HarassmentInstitutional PoliciesExhaustion of RemediesSovereign ImmunityCharitable ImmunityQualified ImmunitySummaryNotesCHAPTER 5 – ACADEMIC AUTHORITYAcademic FreedomStudents’ Academic FreedomFundamental LimitationsFreedom of ExpressionFaculty Criticism of the AdministrationExpression in Private LifeCurriculumReligious InstitutionsResearchGradesConferring DegreesRevoking DegreesSummaryNotesCHAPTER 6 – ADMISSIONSAuthority to AdmitFundamental ConstraintsDiscriminationAffirmative Action Admissions ProgramsLegacy PreferencesBriberyPersonal FavorsSummaryNotesCHAPTER 7 – STUDENT AFFAIRSRelationship with the InstitutionAuthority over Student LifeHonor Codes Disciplinary ActionsHousingRoom Searches and SeizuresFamily Educational Rights and Privacy ActSummaryNotesCHAPTER 8 – HIRINGThe Generic Hiring ProcessFederal Equal Employment Opportunity LawsAffirmative ActionInstitutional Recruitment and Employment PoliciesImposed Hiring: PatronagePolitical PatronageInvisible PatronagePatronage Sanctioned By PolicyFallback AppointmentsSpousal HiresSummaryNotesCHAPTER 9 – EXCEEDING AUTHORITYExceeding the LimitsLack of AuthorityApparent AuthorityEstoppelPromissory EstoppelDeliberate ExceedanceUnintentional Mistakes Due to InexperienceOverestimated AuthorityPremature Assertion of AuthoritySummaryNotesCHAPTER 10 – INTRUSIVE MANAGEMENTQuestions of Competence: MicromanagementOver-CautionOrganizational Change under New LeadershipIntrusion under New LeadershipIntrusion by Outgoing LeadershipIntrusion through Fear of RetributionLegislative IntrusionLegislative Line ItemsLegislative IntentGubernatorial IntrusionGoverning Board Intrusion: Special FavorsSummaryNotesCHAPTER 11 – RESISTING AUTHORITYDisobeying OrdersPassive ResistanceDeliberate ProcrastinationDuplicityStrategic ProcrastinationAdministrative Resistance: Lame DucksIncompetenceDecision-Making DelayFailure to Give InformationFailure to Report InformationSummaryNotesCHAPTER 12 – TERMINATIONSFiring PersonnelCollective Bargaining AgreementsContractual Termination ClausesTermination “For Cause”IncompetenceInsubordinationBreaches of Academic IntegrityMoral TurpitudeWrongful TerminationAlternative Dispute ResolutionAt-Will AgreementsProgressive DisciplineConstructive DischargeSubstance AbuseSummaryNotesCASE INDEXSUBJECT INDEX

Trenchant, incisive, and nuanced, Understanding Authority in Higher Education is the most lucid and comprehensive explanation of how various constituents in colleges and universities derive their legal authority to take actions and why. A veteran in higher education administration, Dean Smith systematically explicates how authority flows throughout an institution, including in the context of shared governance. This book is a must read for everyone in academe — faculty and administrators alike.