Sharing Our Governance

Frances Nguyen once wrote that if students are ever to be educated about the value of diversity, then the faculty must first learn that value and then must model unity in diversity. We teach, for example, that it is necessary for the socio-economic groups and nationalist states of the world to understand and accept one another. In this postmodernist society we would not dream of teaching that every society must conform to a specific model, or that cultural diversity must cease to exist. If we want our students to believe this, then the employees of a college must model it ourselves. We must learn to cooperate toward shared goals despite our distinct individual values.

We All Stand Together

A central aspect of this unity in diversity is the acceptance of one another as they are. It is easy to accept others who are like ourselves. It is easy to accept what we want others to become. It is much more difficult to let others be who they are right now. When we try to weed out employees who vocally disagree, we are not accepting. When we put pressure on others to resign because their methodology, or pedagogy, or philosophy differs from our own, we are not accepting. Again, it is easy to accept someone who is always nice to you, who does what you want them to do, and who is generally agreeable. The challenge before us is not merely to accept such people but to accept all who are part of our community. In doing so, we become a unit. We become a cohesive and united front, and we model what we teach.

Freedom of Speech

Our relationships with one another should be characterized by freedom of speech. First and foremost, we must encourage others to speak freely to us. It is crucial that we allow others to share their unvarnished opinions. A society in which the truth is rarely spoken will never model the principles that we hope to teach to others. Just as in the Greek assembly every citizen was expected to share his view openly, so also it must be in an institution of higher learning. Therefore, you and I must not seek to restrict others from doing so. We must never punish others for speaking openly and truthfully.

Then as we allow others to speak freely, we ourselves must gain the confidence to speak, knowing this: that a relationship in which honesty is the policy is a relationship that is capable of genuine cooperation. If you and I know that we are sharing our views with one another, then we can learn from one another. When we learn from one another, then we value one another more. Finally, as we value one another, our sense of belonging to a team is strengthened. We work together, but do we work together? If our relationships are characterized by acceptance and honesty, then indeed we are capable of such unity.

What It Means to Share

To some people, "Shared Governance" means that not only do I get to control my own affairs, but also I get to control yours. At some institutions, this sort of mutual meddling is passed off as colleagiality. Shared Governance means primarily trusting someone to do what he or she is supposed to do. The president should be trusted to have the best needs of the community as his top priority when negotiating with regents and legislators, or when speaking to Nevada's business leaders and citizens. The faculty should be trusted to operate autonomously in areas related to teaching. The staff should be trusted to make sure the business affairs of the college run smoothly.

We do not all teach the same way. We do not all administer the same way. Neither does everyone share the same philosophy of how a job or task ought to be done. In short, we are different; diversity exists. Sharing governance means encouraging this diversity, in word and in deed. As each of us works separately and differently, and as you and I accept one another in honesty, we become strongly bonded to one another. We should not become worthlessly conceited, thinking that our ways are the only ones that work, and provoking one another. Instead, we look ahead to what we can be if we both esteem and treat one another as equals.