University of Tasmania
Browse

File(s) not publicly available

A genuine career or impossible heroism? Experiencing the role of the Head of School: an Australian case study

journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-26, 08:02 authored by Elaine StratfordElaine Stratford
Studies since the mid-1980s suggest that university heads of schools experience the role as a series of tensions between enlightenment and enterprise-building agendas. It is apparent that the headship requires skills in management and capacities in leadership not necessarily furnished via typical academic pathways. In such light, the present investigation asks could the headship be different, given evidence that scholarly productivity and professional satisfaction are often compromised, even where heads value the role and demonstrate effective leadership? My aim is to contribute to the study of leadership and management in higher education; interpret discourses generated about the experience of the headship; analyse how the role is constituted and bounded; and explore how it might be transformed. Focusing on understandings of the headship at the University of Tasmania, Australia, the work is contextualised to experiences elsewhere, and should have salience across the sector.

History

Publication title

Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management

Volume

34

Article number

3

Number

3

Pagination

225-238

ISSN

1360-080X

Publisher

Routledge

Publication status

  • Published

Repository Status

  • Open

Usage metrics

    University Of Tasmania

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC