Higher Education Administration for Social Justice and Equity: Critical Perspectives for Leadership

by Adrianna Kezar (Editor), Julie Posselt (Editor)

Higher Education Administration for Social Justice and Equity empowers all administrators in higher education to engage in their work--to make decisions, hire, mentor, budget, create plans, and carry out other day-to-day operations--with a clear commitment to justice, sensitivity to power and privilege, and capacity to facilitate equitable outcomes. Grounding administration for social justice as a matter of daily work, this book translates abstract concepts and theory into the work of hiring, socialization, budgeting, and decision-making. Contributed chapters by renowned scholars and current practitioners examine the way higher education administration is organized, and will help readers both question existing structures and practices, and consider new and different ways of organizing campuses based on equity and social justice. Rich with case studies and pedagogical tools, this book connects theory to practice, and is an invaluable resource for current and aspiring administrators.

Genres: School

274 pages, Paperback

Published November 6, 2019

Reviews

[Myc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Higher Education Administration for Social Justice is a mostly well-crafted collection of essays addressing key concerns in higher ed today. As with most collections, some chapters are more useful than others—but one of the problems that plague collections on DEIJ issues are the risks they run of recommendations or practices that are only ever performative in their approach to creating institutional equity (even when arguing their approaches aren’t performative). And there are times where as a reader it feels as though the practices in this collection only ever insist that keeping equity in mind is enough—which only seems to craft an illusion of equity instead of useful praxis.
I think there is definitely value here for pretty much anyone working in higher ed and the goals of the collection are laudable—even if there are times when much of what is presented feels as though it’s directed at very specific or high-level roles. That is to say, some of the essays occasionally feel too narrowly focused. Yet even then, there are still valuable lessons that could be taken away and form the beginning conversations for institutional change.
Overall, this this is a good, very readable (if not always practicable) collection that is useful in the classroom for driving discussion while carrying some solid ideas for those in positions to impact direct day-to-day operations on campus.
To put this review in Goodreads terms, I liked it and will think of it as a solid work to recommend for beginning to think about social justice and equity issues on campus.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better reads of my EdD program thus far. While not all new information, some of it was, and overall it provided me with useful insights and practical strategies to improve higher education for all. While I already consider myself a socially just and equity minded leader, it increased my awareness of some things I could do better or differently and helped me to think about how I can use my position(s) and influence to advance social justice within the environments in which I am situated - not always an easy task when considering all the internal and external factors, but I know my leadership approach to these issues has matured since I first started which makes a difference.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Higher education administration does not receive a great deal of attention from within or outside of the field. Faculty are typically experts in content areas other than higher education praxis, and administrators are left with business manuals from the private sector and personal instinct. This book offers practical, hands-on advice for how to carry out higher education leadership in ways that will increase equity and justice on campus. Good intentions are not sufficient for making real change, but there are processes and procedures that can be followed, in terms of drafting job descriptions, search committees, curricular planning, and student services.

This is a broad resource that will provide members of the higher education community with a strong foundation for ethical and just behavior. Upper level administrators will find this overview helpful for their leadership, and those with more narrow responsibilities will benefit from the breadth before digging into specific chapters related to their own work.