COLLEGES AND OTHER MANAGEMENT
 

[Collegiate landscape . Problems . Management framework Collegiate Council]

13.0 HIGHER EDUCATION - THE COLLEGIATE LANDSCAPE

Our system of higher education is a wide heterogenous spectrum of institutions and services and on 1st April 1988 comprised 142 universities, 22 institutions deemed as universities and 8597 colleges*. The majority of the colleges are of the affiliated category and the others include the university/constituent and autonomous colleges. In each of these categories there are government and private colleges. The pattern of goverance varies considerably in these different colleges in terms of their internal administration as well as in relation to their two principal, external constituencies viz., the university and the government. The universities have to ensure the maintenance of academic standards in their member colleges and the State Governments meet part or whole of the expenditure incurred by these institutions; other matters that relate to the staff and students and their roles in the organisation, administration and development of their respective campuses etc., are largely left to the resourcefulness of individual colleges. The modes of management that one finds are therefore many, and in most cases the management personnel learn on the job and professionalism is an exception.

13.0.1 THE CHANGING SCENE

In the four decades since Independence the pace of change in the educational environment of the country has been rapid and higher education has drawn into its orbit the various processes and 8programmes of secularisation, modernisation, democratisation, social welfare, etc. The principal constituents of the collegiate environment are not only the students, teachers, support staff and administrators, but also the university, government and the neighbourhood communities. The nature and disposition of each one of these constituents, in relation to the overall functioning of the colleges, have undergone significant changes particularly during the past three decades. Upsurge of student activism marked the sixties and seventies, and the eighties are witnessing teacher activism on a totally unprecendented scale. Anti-establishment postures on the part of students and teachers and anti-union attitudes on the part of the managements and administrators are steadily gaining ground everywhere. These disturbing trends in the

* number does not include the junior colleges.Reference : UGC Annual Report 1987-88

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educational environment are not entirely sporadic or erratic and disconnected. It is important to recognise many of these as consequences of specific lacuna in our educational, social and political systems. Today, students and teachers are more concerned, than before, with a variety of matters, specially the policies and operations of the academic institutions they belong to and certain social conditions outside the campuses. The college administrators often seem too fond of defending and entrenching STATUS QUO in campus organisation and administration.

Many of the colleges are less autonomous than they were before in such vital areas as finance, student enrolment, courses of instruction, staff recruitment and service conditions. In some States, the university and government have been rigidly regulating many of these areas of educational management. The ushering in of autonomous colleges since 1978 in the otherwise increasingly rigid monolithic collegiate system is a significant educational reform.

The colleges were until about the 1960s essentially teaching-learning centres and adequately equipped to support the activity. All was well with the institutions and their simple mission of teaching-learning, until pressures of numbers and additional roles of promotion of research and extension services were conceived of for the college communities. The organisational inadequacies to provide for these additional thrusts, the controversies on the rationale of this proliferation of purposes and their consequences are now becoming all too obvious.

13.0.2 SOME GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

1. The College is managed by a group of individuals known generally as the Governing Body of the College which makes all the decisions relating to the internal management of the College; it secures and manages the finances and appoints the principal and the teaching staff. It is this Governing Body that interacts with the University within the university- affiliated college system. The size of the Governing Body is not uniform in all Colleges. The Governing Body is composed of representatives of the promoters of the college, the University and the State Government, and the teaching staff of the college, besides the Principal as an ex-officio member.

2. The university hats substantial authority over the colleges. It prescribes the physical and financial standards to be met by the colleges, the minimum academic qualifications of the teachers to be recruited by them and the course content and text books for the various courses of study offered. In many Universities the University also nominate experts on the Selection

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Committees for the teachers and the Principals. The examinations are the prerogative of the University. It has the power to inspect the colleges and scrutinise their financial and academic records. It seems to control the activities of the colleges so that they operate according to the norms and standards prescribed.

3. The number of colleges affiliated to a university has a significant bearing on the latter's ability to administer them. There appears to be no maximum limits to the number of colleges that may be affiliated to a University in India,

4. The University has the power to affiliate or recognise colleges and to withdraw such affiliation or recognition. The need for a new college is expected to be established on the basis of rational considerations but many a time on non- academic considerations also, such as: (1) Political factors; (2) Geo-political situations and (3) Socio-political force etc. prevail.

5. One of the main reasons for deviation by the colleges, from the University's standards, is the problem of finances . Inadequacy is one aspect of the problem of college finances; the other equally important one is the inefficient management by colleges of their financial resources.

6. The college teachers are recruited by the Governing Body. The University and the State Government send their representatives to sit on the Governing Body of the college in order to ensure that the University's standards are complied with by the college. In many cases, various non- academic considerations seems to be influencing the recruitment of college teachers.

7. The university expects and prescribes that the college teachers would have good service conditions and they provide quality instruction. The prevailing practice as under is not encouraging in this respect:

(a) in several colleges, a high proportion of teachers are maintained on a temporary basis.

(b) salaries are not paid to teachers regularly.

(c) overcrowded classes, heavy teaching load for most teachers-preclude quality instruction.

8. The Principal is the key person in the academic hierarchy of the College. He also acts as a buffer between the Governing Body on the one hand and the University and the State Government on the other. He is responsible for scheduling classes, for determining

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the work load of teachers, for students' discipline and for allocating finances within the limits set by the Governing Body.

9. The University prescribes standards but the standards are left to be enforced by the colleges. Supervision over the college is minimal and intermittent.

10. On the other hand, in some well-established Colleges having resources and also their determination to do quality teaching and other academic work, the University's control concerning syllabi and conduct of examinations sometimes kills all initiative.

11. The conditions prevailing in non-governmental colleges are a. little different from those of the University colleges or the Government Colleges. There is a type of subdued discontentment among the staff which can prevent their whole hearted devotion to the profession. The teachers of these non-government colleges are overloaded with diversified college duties, over and above their heavy teaching assignments resulting in not leaving any sufficient time for research, self education and growth.

Further, teachers of affiliated private colleges are paid different scales of pay and some time the actual payments are far less than the prescribed scales.

13.0.3 MUSHROOM GROWTH OF PRIVATE ENGINEERING COLLEGES

In the course of last six years or so the country had witnessed a mushroom growth of a very large number of private engineering colleges, on no grant basis, particularly in the States of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and lately Tamil Nadu. Most of these colleges have poor facilities, poor framework and poor conception. Further, there is no link, with the real market potential. It is very difficult to run an Engineering College or a University Department of Engineering, as evident from long established institutions. This poses a grave danger to the whole system of education in Engineering and Technology and calls for immediate remedial measures. The recent constitution of the Statutory Body in the form of All Indian Council of Technical Education should be of great help but a quick action is required. In fact even in the course of last couple of months new institutions have been established and it is not clear as to how many such institution really exist in our country.

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13.1 MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK

Every college needs to formulate its mission and goals in terms of academic, social and other objectives and channel its personnel and other resources accordingly towards optimum realisation of the objectives. Appropriate organisational structures within colleges are crucial for effective management and the simplest way to focus on the wide variety of activities will be to group the activities and functions expected to be performed on the college campuses. Three such broad groupings common to all colleges are academic affairs, student affairs and business affairs. The three groupings are not entirely exclusive of each other and the recognition of their areas of mutual overlap and the need for coordination is itself a. good start for effective management of a college.

Heads of departments, warden(s) and vice-principal(s) share with the Principal and the Secretary (or Manager) of the College, the general managerial responsibilities in the college. The extent of delegation of authority by the Governing Board and the Principal to these campus officers for policy and decision-making is largely ill-defined and arbitrary. It will be most desirable for a college to categorise and manage its campus activities as academic affairs, student affairs, and business affairs, and assign each to a competent member of the faculty who could be designated as Dean (or Vice-Principal or Director or Coordinator) holding office for a term of say, three years.

The roles and functions of the Governing Board and different officers could be outlined as follows:

GOVERNING BOARD/TRUSTEES - Institutional objectives and policies - fund raising - investments - capital expenditure - appointment of the faculty and campus officers.

SECRETARY OR [ MANAGER OR ADMINISTRATOR] - Implementation of policies, general administration, management of funds.

PRINCIPAL - Quality of education - Admissions - faculty development - evaluation of campus programmes - new programmes and development - assisting in fund raising relations with the university, government, alumni, other support agencies and the general public - overall coordination and management.

DEAN OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS - Academic planning - standards of instruction, time -table - examinations - student records.

DEAN OF STUDENT AFFAIRS - Student hostels and messing scholarships and other financial aid - extra-curricular programmes - health services - counselling and career guidance.

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DEAN OF BUSINESS AFFAIRS - Buildings and grounds budgeting and financial control - non-academic personnel administration - employee welfare - public relations.

The officer in-charge of each major area of management should be assisted by a small Committee consisting of 2 or 3 teachers/ hostel wardens etc as the case may be. Students should be associated with the Committee for Student Affairs.

The campus community's appreciation of the concept of participatory management often makes the faculty-student- administrator-management relations more tense than otherwise. In almost every area of organisation and operation of the college (viz., admissions, syllabi, examinations, extra-curricular programmes, appointments, promotions, fund-raising, budgeting, development proposals, etc.), the roles of these campus constituencies tend to overlap and often blur one's understanding of the scope of one's legitimate authority. Stresses are unavoidable, and a rational management framework combined with a good measure of collegiality and tradition is the only means of handling them.

Each college may, depending on its particular type, programmes and resources, modify this pattern with different permutations and combinations, broader or narrower groupings and span of control, more or fewer levels etc., for efficient management of its affairs. Individual colleges, subject to their size and diversity of programmes may enlist more or fewer members of the faculty for managing the campus activities and suitably modify the general pattern of governance indicated above.

A simple organisation chart is given at the end of this Chapter.

Clearly defined administrative lines of responsibility are basic to any college organisational structure. In small colleges responsibility may be combined in various ways and it would not be unusual for one person to be in charge of two or three different areas of management. The Planning and Monitoring Cell will greatly facilitate academic and administrative auditing (self-appraisel) essential to the well-being of the College.

13.2 DISPUTES AND DISRUPTION OF WORK

Dissent and disputes are not uncommon on college campuses and may involve one or more of its constituencies viz., students, staff, administrators, the management, the university and the government. Consequently there may be disruption of work and in extreme cases vandalism and violence too may be sparked off. Areas prone to disputes in case of students are admission, hostels, fee levies, examination schedules, campus amenities, extra curricular

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programmes, and elections: Staff dissent relates mostly to scales of pay, service benefits and working conditions.

Students generally take issue with the Principal and management of the college or the University, and staff protests are generally against the management (governing board/trustees) of the college or the government. While each dispute has to be dealt with on its own merits, participatory management and following of Codes of Conduct becoming of an academic community, should help in mitigating or even preventing many of them. Administrative machinery (reconcilliation provisions and Tribunals) for redressal of grievances and resolving of internal disputes should also be available.

A major theme in the debate about the organisational structure of colleges is the relationship between executive and representative structures. The student and staff associations and unions have largely come to stay, and regulating their influences on campus governance in general and academic policies in particular requires utmost prudence and trained managerial skills on the part of college administrators and managements.The areas of interest and responsibility of students and teachers should be well demarcated and firmly enforced. Though, governing bodies and trustees do give to the colleges their time and some expertise, many of them do not seem inclined to take a firm grip on matters of educational policy and programmes and resort too easily to bureaucratic practices. Governance of a college involves knowledge about academic ethos and about interpersonal relationships linked to the history and traditions of the institution. There cannot be one pattern for all colleges regarding student and teacher involvement in administration and the role of managements, but definite lines of communication between these campus constituencies will greatly facilitate effective management of the colleges.

13.3 COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL or COLLEGIATE COUNCIL

In the affiliating-type of Universities, the focus, so far, has been more on prescribing and monitoring of affiliation-conditions than on the University's obligations to help or nurture these institutions to develop their infrastructure. It is no surprise that many colleges in the mofusil centres and semi-urban areas are unaware of the various schemes/sources of funding and they are not quite conversant with the procedures of preparing and putting-up their grant-claims. With a view to providing a ready consultancy and guidance service in this regard, and proper monitoring of programme, EVERY AFFILIATING UNIVERSITY SHOULD ESTABLISH AN OFFICE OF DEAN OF COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT WITH THE BACK-UP OF A COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL / or COLLEGIATE

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COUNCIL [CDC], if not already done. This Council shall consist of representatives of college Principals, University Syndicate, some faculty members, the U.G.C./State Council for Higher Education and the State Government. A model composition of the CDC is given in Annexure 5 . The Council should serve as a. "single-window" where all the grant-problems could be sorted out and the follow-up actions initiated. The Dean's office should:

(a) disseminate information on various funding sources and schemes, and procedures of applying for grants;

(b) help prepare the plan proposals and project proposals for grants;

(c) channelise the proposals to the funding agencies and keep track thereof;

(d) monitor proper utilisation of these grants by the concerned affiliated colleges by getting periodical reports and arranging periodical inspection of the affiliated colleges;

(e) prepare an Annual Report of grants received, and utilised by the affiliated colleges as also unutilised and outstanding grants. This Report may be presented to the State Government and U.G.C. annually.

(f) undertake monitoring of academic programmes, observance of Academic Calender, help in grievance redressal and conflict resolution and generally act as a friend and a guide of the college principals to whom they can go for help.

(g) create an appropriate Data Base in order to identify the Colleges for earning autonomy and for other academic developments.

(h) The Dean of Colleges should be associated with the decision making process regarding affiliation (Temporary or Permanent] of the Colleges. When starting of a new college is contemplated by the State Government or any other agency, the Dean of Colleges should be made a member of the Committee which decides whether the College should be opened or not.

Collegiate Council should be an effective link between Colleges and the University on the one hand and the Government,State Council for Higher Education and U.G.C. on the other. It would be helpful if the UGC / SCHE / State Government delegates schemes involving small funds for implementation by the College Development Council. Some more details are also given in the Chapter on Decentralised Management [Chapter 14].

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13.4 SOME OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS

We also make the following recommendations:-

1. Under-graduate education should be kept under constant review and the UGC/SCHE should have a Standing Advisory Committee to outline objectives of under- graduate education in relation to contemporary life and advances made in various disciplines;

2. Normally, colleges should not engage in post- graduate teaching. But when it is necessary under special circumstances the P.G.teaching work should not be entrusted to part-time teachers; only full-time teacher should do post-graduate teaching.

3. The UGC should lay down minimum norms of affiliation which should not be watered down except with its prior approval.

4. New colleges should be set up only after a joint survey by the affiliating university, the UGC and the State Council for Higher Education so that proliferation of sub-standard colleges is curbed.

5. Affiliation of Colleges must vest only with a University and be given on academic grounds alone and no extraneous considerations should be allowed to come into play.

6. A reasonably uniform and sound system of grant-in- aid to affiliated colleges all over the country should be evolved from time to time by the UGC.

7. The Principal, an academic leader in his own right, should be a man of eminance and integrity. Therefore the selection of principal must be made through a selection Committee having representatives from University.

8. It will be most desirable for a college to categorise and manage its campus activities into Cal academic affairs, lb] student affairs, (c) business affairs, and assign each to a competent member of the faculty who could be designated as Dean [or Vice- Principal or Director or Co-Ordinator) holding office for a term of say, three years.

Further the State Government should exercise considerable restraint in the establishment of new colleges. However, if the establishment of new colleges is justified, it should be ensured that the terms and conditions recommended by the UGC in their guidelines for granting affiliation are fulfilled.

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We are also of the view that the UGC guidelines relating to the structure of governance indicated in the scheme of autonomous colleges need not be considered inflexible. The Universities in consultation with the State Government, and the UGC may consider appropriate modifications keeping the basic objectives of the scheme in view, while protecting the interests of all concerned.

13.5 ROLE OF UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENTS IN AFFILIATING UNIVERSITIES

About seventy five per cent of the students receive higher education in affiliated colleges. The improvement in the quality of teaching in these colleges, therefore, is the key to raising the standards of Higher Education in the Country. Some steps have been taken in the past with this objective in view, viz.,

(a] The Setting up of Post-graduate Departments directly administered by affiliated Universities to provide leadership to its colleges.

lb] raising the salary scales of college teachers and equating them with those of University teachers so that better teacher could be attracted to the colleges also; and

Cc] the conferment of autonomous status on such colleges which showed promise of achieving excellence.

However, it appears that, by and large, the thrust of Postgraduate Deaprtments of affiliating Universities has shifted to the traditional role of teaching and research and that the purpose for which they were essentially established, i.e. providing academic leadership to the affiliated colleges, has receded into the background.

The need for upgrading the standard of teaching and introducing some element of research, besides other perspectives, in such colleges cannot be over- emphasized. The NPE has stated in Para 5.27 that 'urgent steps will be taken to protect the system from degradation"

IN THIS CONTEXT OF THE ABOVE, THE ESSENTIAL ROLE AND PURPOSE OF THE POST-GRADUATE DEPARTMENTS OF AFFILIATING UNIVERSITIES NEEDS TO BE CLEARLY STATED THROUGH THE INTRODUCTION OF A PROVISION IN THE ENACTMENT OF AFFILIATING UNIVERSITIES THEMSELVES. THE PERFORMANCE OF THE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENTS AND OF THE TEACHERS THEREIN NEEDS TO BE, HENCEFORTH, EVALUATED IN THE CONTEXT OF THIS STATED PURPOSE. UGC DEVELOPMENTAL FUNDING ALSO NEEDS TO BE TOTALLY LINKED TO THE QUALITY AND EXTENT OF LEADERSHIP PROVIDED BY DEPARTMENTS TO THE AFFILIATED COLLEGES AND FOR THIS PURPOSE, THESE DEAPRTMENTS NEED TO BE CONTINUOUSLY ASSESSED WITH THIS PERSPECTIVE IN VIEW.

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