Participation of student leaders in governance of a transforming university

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the extent to which student leaders participate in the governance of a transforming university. The study explored their participation in the decision-making of the university, the roles they play and the value they add both to the university and to themselves in the process of their engagement. The ladder of community participation was adopted as a conceptual framework that guided the understanding of how student leaders may contribute in the decision-making of the university and how the process may benefit them as well as the society. The study adopted a qualitative approach which was modelled on a case study in order to explore the experiences of student leaders during their participation in the governance of a transforming university. Ten university student leaders from two different student structures in the Faculty of Education were interviewed. The findings revealed that the student leaders at the ground level participated to some extent with the process allowing them to “hear and be heard” although they lacked power to influence final decision-making. The study further found that student leaders at the faculty/departmental level have access to experiences and information that may improve the quality and accountability of decision-making. Based on the study findings the following recommendations were made, namely, the need for university management to consider the full participation of student leaders from faculties, departments and/or committees because they have the potential to assist with problem solving at the local level in respect of issues that have an immediate impact on students while offering an opportunity for building a sense of community between students and management.