Notes on Birnbaum, R. (1989) The Latent Organizational Functions of the Academic Senate

Prepared by Ariadna73 Page 1 of 3

Use of the term Academic Senate Formal representative, governance structure at the institutional level Faculty or faculty majority and representatives of others like

administrators, staff, students, etc Exist in one or other form in about 60% to 80% of all campuses

The manifest functions of the academic senate Manifest functions are those for which behavior leads to some specified

and related achievement

There are three models that analysts use to view Senates Model 1: Bureaucratic: The senate is viewed as an integral part of a hierarchical, rational organization

This model recognizes eight functions 1. Senates clarify institutional purpose 2. Specify program objectives 3. Reallocate income resources 4. Develop new income resources 5. Management of operations 6. Degree requirements 7. Academic behavior 8. Program evaluation

An observer using this model will consider the senate to be effective if • It considers institutional problems efficiently • Uses rational processes to

Develop rules Regulations Procedures

Critics using this model view Senates as slow and inefficient

Model 2: Political Position: Views the senate as part of a political system The Senate is viewed as a forum for the articulation of interests

• Senates serve as a place for campus politicians to exercise their trade An observer using this model will consider the senate to be effective if it formulated

and clarified goals and policies Critics using this model view Senates as oligarchical and not representative

Model 3: Collegial viewpoint: Views the university as a collegium. It has a less explicit analysis of the senate

The Senate in this model is a forum for achieving goal of a dynamic of consensus An observer using this model will consider the senate to be effective if it develops

shared values leading to consensus Critics using this model view Senates as vehicles to expose latent conflict and

increase feelings of community

Notes on Birnbaum, R. (1989) The Latent Organizational Functions of the Academic Senate

Prepared by Ariadna73 Page 2 of 3

Each one of the three models suggests its own range of activities,

processes and outcomes as the manifest functions of the Senate Because the Senate does not appear to be doing any of those functions well, it

appears to be a solution looking for problems! But the Senates do survive! So they might be doing something. What can that

possible be? The answer is: The latent functions!

The latent functions of the academic senate The Senate as a Symbol

Symbolize institutional membership Collective and individual faculty commitment to professional values Joint faculty-administration acceptance of existing authority relationships

The Senate as Status Provider

Faculty members are always super-worried with their statuses. They have huge egos

The Senate offers a route of social mobility Prevents the rising of informal leaders and organizational deviants

The Senate as Garbage Can and Deep Freeze

Problems become more difficult as they become connected with garbage (other problems, solutions and participants)

Any choice point in a college can become a garbage can The senate can be used to focus attention on irrelevant matters and force

decisions on what interests the manipulators

The Senate as Attention Cue The number of problems and solutions is large The senate can play a role of driving attention to some problems and solutions, by

an heuristic process

The Senate as Personnel Screening Device The senate can be used to see if some candidates are suitable to fill administrative positions. See if they get along with faculty members and with administrative people

The Senate as Organizational Conservator Administrators and presidents usually don't want to change processes, so the Senate comes in handy to keep things as they are The Senate can be used as a protective shield from those that want to gather data that can be useful for analysis and management

Notes on Birnbaum, R. (1989) The Latent Organizational Functions of the Academic Senate

Prepared by Ariadna73 Page 3 of 3

The Senate as Ritual and as Pastime Universities are highly informal, and it is comforting to meet on a regular schedule As a ritual, the Senate provides a sense of membership and integration For others, the senate can be just a pastime. A place to meet with friends and follow faculty gossip

The Senate as Scapegoat For all the things that go wrong in the University (and there are a lot!) the senate provides a wonderful scapegoat. It can be blamed for anything The senate can help keep cause-effect relationships in a fuzzy state that make things difficult to follow

Academic Senates in Symbolic Organizational Systems The world is complex, and organizations can be seen as groups of

people trying to give meaning to all that mess

The American college or university is a prototype of organized anarchy. It is a mess, but some bodies like the Senate help give a sense of meaning to it

When the Senate is seen as part of an organized anarchy, it's reason of being becomes apparent, and it is no longer a mystery how they keep existing when they seem not to be doing anything useful

The latent functions must be taken into consideration by all those who want to eliminate the Senate. Eliminating it can lead to unintended and probably undesired consequences