Research Forum 2003

Michael N. Bastedo
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Activist Governing Boards: A New Metapolicy for Public Higher Education?

The activist governing board is a relatively new phenomenon with the potential to initiate wide-ranging changes in the governance of public higher education. Although a great deal of attention has been paid to these boards in recent years, little if any empirical analysis has been conducted. This paper reports on an in-depth case study of the activist governing board appointed in Massachusetts in 1995. The new board initiated a broad array of policies over a brief five-year period, including admissions standards, reductions in remedial education, increased financial aid for low-income students, and a series of policies to promote mission differentiation. This attempt at systemic reform is characterized as a new metapolicy for public higher education. The major elements of the metapolicy are discussed, including the activist philosophy for policymaking and the potential for substantial changes in the organizational characteristics of governing boards.