Back to Results
Cover image of How University Boards Work
Cover image of How University Boards Work
Share this Title:

How University Boards Work

A Guide for Trustees, Officers, and Leaders in Higher Education

Robert A. Scott

Publication Date
Binding Type

An expert guide designed to help university trustees become effective leaders.

Honorable Mention for Eric Hoffer Award (Business Category) by The Hoffer Project

We expect college and university trustees to hire the president, advise senior staff, manage investments and financial decisions, and oversee major strategic initiatives. Unfortunately, they sometimes come into this powerful role with little or no understanding of what they are meant to do or how their institutions work.

How University Boards Work, by Robert A. Scott, is designed to help trustees understand how to fulfill their...

An expert guide designed to help university trustees become effective leaders.

Honorable Mention for Eric Hoffer Award (Business Category) by The Hoffer Project

We expect college and university trustees to hire the president, advise senior staff, manage investments and financial decisions, and oversee major strategic initiatives. Unfortunately, they sometimes come into this powerful role with little or no understanding of what they are meant to do or how their institutions work.

How University Boards Work, by Robert A. Scott, is designed to help trustees understand how to fulfill their responsibilities. Written by a widely respected leader in American higher education and former university president, How University Boards Work is the product of personal experience and considerable research. This concise, straightforward guide includes:

• an explanation of the difference between governance and management
• tips on how best to prepare for board decisions and discussions
• examples of positive and negative board behavior
• guidance about board professional development
• advice on managing transitions between chief executives

How University Boards Work will prove an invaluable resource for those responsible for governing colleges and universities, whether privately financed or state funded. It will also be an illuminating read for board secretaries, campus executives and administrators, faculty leaders, alumni volunteers, and public officials, as well as anybody seeking to understand institutional governance in the light of past and current trends in higher education.

Reviews

Reviews

The ideas are presented alongside some changes colleges and universities could make on their own, like modifying class schedules to make better use of facilities. But the inclusion of policy ideas in a book aimed at trustees fits a larger idea: the big picture matters for colleges and universities, and their leaders, as they face the future.

An important resource for both trustees and presidents, as well as anyone seeking to understand institutional governance.

Scott has written a gold standard owner’s manual for college and university board members. A copy of his book given to every new trustee will add much to their performance and the satisfaction of the institutions they help to govern. Bob Scott is the Julia Child of higher educational governance.

As one of the most successful US college presidents in recent years, Robert A. Scott fully understands the importance of creating strong boards whose members understand the idiosyncrasies of academic institutions. Writing with his usual clarity, Scott lays out the traditional and emerging governance challenges to colleges and universities today. How University Boards Work should now be the first item in every new trustee’s orientation packet.

See All Reviews
About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
5
x
8
Pages
224
ISBN
9781421424941
Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction: Why A Guide
1. Historical and Structrual Framework of Governance
2. Board Responsibilities
3. Board Membership
4. Processes and Procedures
5. Strategic Leadersip
6

Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction: Why A Guide
1. Historical and Structrual Framework of Governance
2. Board Responsibilities
3. Board Membership
4. Processes and Procedures
5. Strategic Leadersip
6. Leading Higher Education Into the Future
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Author Bio
Featured Contributor

Robert A. Scott

Robert A. Scott is the former president of Adelphi University and of Ramapo College of New Jersey.