Getting to shared governance: New perspectives for implementing governance

AbstractEffective shared governance processes enhance institutional effectiveness and sustainability, but governance in higher education is complex. The concept of shared governance lacks common understandings and practice, and models are outdated and need to be more inclusive, nimble, and flexible. Community colleges are responsive institutions and therefore well‐positioned to have a role in rethinking shared governance. However, before we can create new models, we need new ways of thinking about governance. Based on trends in research on shared governance in this chapter, we argue that new perspectives on shared governance include a focus on trust and transparency and provide examples of shared governance opportunities and challenges through the perspectives of key stakeholders. We suggest interest‐based bargaining as one of the tools for institutions to manage important conversations about stakeholders’ shared responsibility for student success. We may never agree on shared governance, but we need to find a way of effective, participatory governance. This chapter creates some opportunities for creating such a space.