TITLE:
Rethinking and Reframing Leadership of Historically Black Colleges and Universities: A Distributed Perspective
AUTHORS:
De Witt Scott, Resche Hines
KEYWORDS:
HBCUs, Higher Education Leadership, Distributed Leadership, Higher Education Administration
JOURNAL NAME:
Creative Education,
Vol.5 No.13,
July
14,
2014
ABSTRACT: In recent years, many
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have experienced a decline
in enrollment and prestige. Several leading scholars attribute this to societal
shifts that have challenged the historical mission of HBCUs. Higher education’s
current environment demands a transformation of how HBCU leadership is
administered if these institutions are to survive. Distributed leadership
focuses primarily on the process of leadership rather than the traditional
perspective of a single, dynamic leader at the top of a hierarchical chain, as
is typically experienced at most HBCUs. This paper will contend that
distributed leadership is an effective leadership strategy for the maintenance,
sustainability, and advancement of HBCUs.