Date of Award

2003

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

Limited research exists on assessing the performance of campus-level boards involved in the governance of campuses within multicampus systems. The purpose of this mixed-method study was to identify factors that contribute to the performance of campus-level boards. The study included 13 campus-level boards that served the Ivy Tech State College multicampus system. Seventy of the 90 trustees appointed to the 13 boards participated in the quantitative element of the study. The Board Self Assessment Questionnaire (BSAQ) developed by Chait, Holland, and Taylor provided data for the quantitative element of the study. Interviews of 10 trustees, purposefully selected from the 70 trustee respondents, provided the data for the qualitative element of the study. Five trustees represented the group of higher performing boards and five trustees represented the group of lower performing boards. The study presented three identifiable conclusions. First, there were specific competency-related items on the BSAQ that distinguished higher performing boards from lower performing boards. Scores representing the group of higher performing boards were higher than the corresponding scores for the lower performing boards in each of the six BSAQ board competency areas and on 58 of the 65 BSAQ items. Second, the demographic differences between members of the two board groups did not differentiate the membership of the board groups. Third, compared to the group of lower performing boards, the interviewed members representing the group of higher performing boards mentioned more facilitators of board effectiveness but fewer inhibitors of board effectiveness. This conclusion infers that the group of higher performing boards was more experienced than the group of lower performing boards at engaging in meaningful board activities that facilitate board performance. The study includes recommendations for enhancing the performance of campus-level boards. This study has implications for trustees and administrators involved with campus-level boards.

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