What is Good Governance in Higher Education, Now?

Opinions expressed in AGB blogs are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the institutions that employ them or of AGB.

At the AGB Council of Board Professionals convening in June, AGB consultant and senior fellow Ellen Chaffee engaged the council in a discussion centering on, “What is good governance, now?” The conversation referenced AGB’s Govern NOW initiative, supported by the Mellon Foundation, to raise awareness and provide tools to governing boards to protect institutional autonomy, academic freedom, and free speech.

The following summary of this discussion reflects remarks made by council members from a broad range of institutions, systems, and foundations in higher education.

In today’s volatile climate, some political leaders, donors, and other stakeholders are attempting to redefine the concept of good governance in higher education to reflect a narrower view of institutions’ responsibilities.

However, stripped to its essence, a governing board has two core responsibilities:

Ensure the institution fulfills its mission with quality.
Ensure sustainable access to essential resources.

These responsibilities are timeless—but the context in which they must be exercised has changed dramatically. Many institutions are at risk due to funding threats and declining public confidence in higher education’s value proposition. This situation is at least partially fueled by skepticism of how a traditional postsecondary education aligns with workforce needs.

The New Reality: Mission and Resources Under Siege

Governing boards are now navigating unprecedented challenges on both fronts:

Mission fulfillment is increasingly threatened by political interference. Academic freedom and freedom of expression—cornerstones of higher education—are under fire from both federal and state actors.
Resource sustainability is destabilized by erratic federal decisions which cut off billions in funding and by other external pressures which disrupt faculty members’ working conditions and institutional autonomy.

Institutional autonomy, academic freedom, and free speech are all under pressure. These pressures are often abrupt, legally codified, and politically charged. Boards might find themselves powerless to prevent or mitigate these forces. Worse, resistance—real or perceived—can provoke retaliation, creating a climate of fear, uncertainty, and instability.

Next Steps Forward

Administrators and boards must address these challenges to protect higher education. Collaboration, hard data, impact scenarios, and policy analysis are key tools for our boards, presidents, and chief executives to advocate candidly and enact effective change to protect our institutions’ missions.

In times of great uncertainty, we must implement a more adaptive, forward-thinking approach to persevere. The industry must rebuild public trust by increasing transparency in operations and outcomes. Demonstrating how our educational offerings align with workforce needs is even more essential now than in the past. We must also engage with our communities and promote the direct benefits of our research with a broader group of stakeholders.

Finally, these threats to institutional autonomy, academic freedom, and free speech require collective action. We are in a period when we must rely even more on our higher education associations to provide guidance and encourage broad coordination of institutional efforts.

Tina Montemayor, PhD, is secretary to the board of regents in the Office of the Board of Regents of the University of Texas System.

Artificial intelligence tools assisted in the development of this blog post.