| Since the 17th century,with the growing strength of the academic team and elevation of teacher’s specialization in American university,teachers have gradually become the main force of university academic governance,and the faculty senate system has also emerged.Founded in 1968 and with a 55-year history,the Faculty Senate of Stanford University provides an effective platform for faculty to participate in university governance and is an important organization for Stanford University tomaintain its academic excellence.At present,under the background of building a worldclass university and promoting the modernization of university governance system and governance capacity,it is of great practical significance to explore the role of the faculty senate system in university governance and summarize the useful experience of academic governance of foreign universities.Stanford University is a top private research university in the United States,this paper takes the Faculty Senate of Stanford University as a case study,conduct an in-depth study of the faculty senate system.The analytical framework is determined from the perspective of new institutionalism and theory of organizational culture,including dynamic change of faculty senate system,formal procedures of the system and organizational culture ecology.Firstly,the development stage of the faculty senate system of American research universities is reviewed vertically.From macroscopic perspective to microcosmic perspective,this paper also analyzes the historical development stages of the Faculty Senate of Stanford University,including the prototype stage and the formal creation stage,clarifies its different forms in different stages.Secondly,this paper analyzes the formal regulations of the Faculty Senate of Stanford University,it has clarified the organizational structure,sorted out the rules for holding meetings,electing members and making decisions of the senate,and analyzed the boundaries of power between the senate and other governing bodies of the university.Finally,from the perspective of organizational culture theory,the cultural elements behind the faculty senate system are analyzed,such as the value concept,preferences for selection of members,governance content,and the protection of members’ rights and interests.As a result of the above analysis,the characteristics of faculty senate system of Stanford University are derived,which are embodied in the following four points:the democratization of the election of members and decision-making processes;diversification of governance bodies and clarity of the boundaries of power;governance content covers both academic and marginal affairs;organizational culture leads to building a community of trust.However,the faculty senate system has limitations in terms of voting method,the establishment of senate representatives,the establishment of a faculty grievance body,and the prominence of the role of the informal system.Through the study of the faculty senate system of Stanford University,this paper aims to provide useful experience for Chinese universities to improve the academic committee system and promote the modernization of university governance system and governance capacity. |
