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A Comparative Analysis of Women Leaders in Higher

Education For-Profit vs. Traditional

Constance St. GermainBenedictine University

HEOC 803-D6A2July 8, 2012

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Issue

The issue/topic and why it is important and

valuable to the field

Research Problem & Purpose

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Issue(s):• Traditionally, leadership positions in higher education

have been dominated by men. However, with the rise of for-profits in recent years, women have begun to assume an increasing role in the leadership of these institutions.

• This is important and valuable to the field of educational research because for-profits have brought disruptive change to higher education through their delivery of educational content. So too may this change in gender leadership influence traditional higher education.


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Research Problem

A distinct research problem that reflects the issue


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Research Problem: Today women make up more than half of the work force in the United States.

Women continue to surpass men in enrollments in pursing their higher education. The demographics of women in leadership positions in traditional higher education are not reflective of this. Instead it has been dominated by tradition, custom, and networking whereby men have gained access to positions of leadership, with women being provided little support in career progression.

However, at for-profit institutions, women’s presence in the leadership ranks is clearly seen and increasing. Women are building powerful career networks with others that have far reaching implications, and are shaping non-traditional education. Little attention has been paid to gender issues at the leadership rank at such institutions. Why are women more visible in leadership positions at for-profits? In fact, a preliminary review of the literature on this topic is silent in this area. I found the decided lack of research in this area of particular importance given the increasing influence of for-profits in higher education.


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Evidence

Evidence that justifies the research problem and

supports your assumptions


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Evidence: A review of leadership at for-profits (i.e. APUS,

Grand Canyon, Kaplan, Walden, Capella) reveals that the majority of them have women well placed in leadership positions in the company. 1

Companies with more women in executive leadership positions/boards were found to out perform their rivals. 2

At traditional institutions, majority of leadership is still Caucasian males over the age of 60. 3


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Purpose



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Purpose:The purpose of this study is to explore what

factors contribute to the success of women in higher education and is there a difference between women higher education executives at for-profits and traditional higher education?


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Research Questions: What is the meaning of the larger number of

women in positions of leadership at for-profit institutions of higher education?

Sub questions:1) Is there a difference between women

executives in higher education in traditional academe as compared to for-profits?

2) What factors contributes to success of women at for-profits?


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Targeted Audience

A targeted audience that would want to know more

about the study


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The Audience: By examining the discrepancy between women leaders at

for-profits and traditional higher education institutions, using a qualitative approach, I hope to better understand what factors might contribute to the overall of success of women leaders. With this understanding, it will further allow me to determine if there is a difference between women executives at these two types of institutions. This research, in turn, can provide higher education in general with insight as to what measures can be taken to make women successful at the executive level within institutions.


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Bibliography (as of 7/7/12)

Antonaros, M. (2010). Gendered leadership styles and the climate for women leaders in higher education. On Campus with Women, 39(2), 7.

Collings, S., Conner, L., McPherson, K., Midson, B., & Wilson, C. (2011). Learning to be leaders in higher education: What helps or hinders women’s advancement as leaders in universities. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 39(1), 44-62. doi:10.1177/1741143210383896

Cook, B. & Kim, Y. (2012, March). The American college president 2012. Retrieved from http://www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=CPA&TEMPLATE=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=44473

The Lord Davies Report. (2011, February). Women on boards. Retrieved from http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/business-law/docs/w/11-745-women-on-boards.pdf

United States Department of State. (2012, March 1). Corporate advantage: How women leaders elevate the bottom line. Retrieved from http://www.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/2012/184988.htm

White, J. S. (2012). HERS institutes: Curriculum for advancing women leaders in higher education. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 14(1), 11-27. doi:10.1177/1523422311429732


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1. American Public University System (APUS). (2011). Senior management. Retrieved from http://www.apus.edu/leadership/Capella University. (2011). Administration. Retrieved from http://www.capella.edu/about_capella/administration.aspx#fwilliamsonGrand Canyon University. (2011). Leadership team. Retrieved from http://www.gcu.edu/About-Us/Grand-Canyon-Education-Inc-/Leadership-Team.phpWalden University. (2011). Leadership. Retrieved from http://www.waldenu.edu/About-Us/18879.htm2. United States Department of State. (2012, March 1). Corporate advantage: How women leaders elevate the bottom line. Retrieved from http://www.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/2012/184988.htm3. Cook, B. & Kim, Y. (2012, March). The American college president 2012. Retrieved from http://www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=CPA&TEMPLATE=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=44473

References


I ssue

Documents

positions of leadership

higher education forprofit

women executives

success of women

review of leadership

majority of leadership

demographics of women

nontraditional education