The role of an academic dean in creating a new academic program as part of a university strategic plan

Restricted until 8 Aug. 2009.In this study, the role of an academic dean was examined during a university strategic planning process and implementation. Using the methods of document analysis and semi-structured interviews, I looked at the dean's role in the creation and development of a university's first doctoral program. The dean's role was difficult to define due to the cultural changes the campus experienced during this change process. Prior to the implementation of the strategic plan, JPU was a small, intimate institution that many community members described as a "familial" environment. As the institution grew in size and became more complex and multi-faceted, the role of deans was in a state of transition. Deans were now asked to assume a greater range of responsibilities and expand the scope of their decision-making. The fact that the school of education had never had a deanship position also contributed to the lack of clarity about the dean's role.; However, there is no doubt that the dean was pivotal in the creation of the doctoral program. His influence was most pronounced in his articulation of the vision for the doctoral program. He also initiated a meeting with the university president that would position the school of education advantageously throughout the strategic planning process. During the implementation of the doctoral program, the dean's successor continued to generate support for the program by linking the program to the advancement of JPU's strategic plan and the President's overall vision for the institution. I further analyzed the leadership and strategic behavior of the dean using the two frameworks of the adaptive and interpretive frameworks. I found that the dean's behavior corresponded strongly with the interpretive model but did not align as well with the interpretive model. This study highlights the need to carefully evaluate the fiscal costs associated with developing a new academic program at both the department and institution-wide levels