Crisis Leadership in Higher Education

Theory and Practice

By Ralph A. Gigliotti

Rutgers University Press

There was a time when crises on college and university campuses were relatively rare. Much has changed, and it has changed quite rapidly. Rather than being isolated incidents requiring the sole attention of presidents, chancellors, or communication professionals, the proliferation of crises across campuses means that crisis leadership has now become fundamental to the work of university personnel across levels, disciplines, and institutions. Drawing upon the findings of forty interviews with senior leaders from ten major research universities across the United States and a content analysis of over one thousand articles from a variety of news outlets, Crisis Leadership in Higher Education presents a theory-informed framework for academic and administrative leaders who must navigate the institutional and environmental crises that are most germane to institutions of higher education. The perspectives offered in this book remind us that it is in the chaos and uncertainty of crisis that leadership becomes most visible and most critical.

In this time of rapid change in higher education, it is incumbent upon every academic leader to know how to act effectively in a crisis. Sound crisis leadership saves careers, keeps academic institutions from being weakened or destroyed, and helps protects the students those institutions serve. I believe that every administrator and faculty leader should be acquainted with the ideas presented in Crisis Leadership in Higher Education: Theory and Practice and be prepared to adopt the framework it presents as a means of preserving the integrity of their universities, colleges, and programs. Jeffrey L. Buller, author of The Essential Academic Dean or Provost: A Comprehensive Desk Reference

If ever there was a book for its time, Crisis in Higher Education: Theory and Practice by Ralph Gigliotti is it. The crises befalling higher education today are coming fast and furious, and the demands placed upon academic leaders are numerous. Crisis management requires a highly coordinated effort, a heightened sensitivity to context, serving the needs of multiple constituencies, and seamless execution. Dr. Gigliotti’s book is a rich study of the most current academic crises, a practical exploration of the lessons learned, and a competencies scorecard that is a valuable tool. Although leadership in higher education has historically been a neglected area of research, Ralph Gigliotti admirably steps in to fill that gap. This book is a must read for leadership scholars and academic practitioners alike. Gail T. Fairhurst, author of The Power of Framing: Creating the Language of Leadership

The issue of crisis communication is vital in today's historical moment. Crisis Leadership in Higher Education is unlike any book I’ve ever seen, blending the voices of administrators with the literature on crisis in order to offer insights that will be valuable to the community of academic administrators. Janie Harden Fritz, Ph.D., author of Professional Civility, editor of Journal of the Association for Communication Administration

Read this book. Now. If you wait until you need it to address a crisis, you may end up finding yourself with lots of unintended time to read it and to consider options that might have led to better outcomes. Robin Kaler, Associate Chancellor for Public Affairs, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

When a college or university is plunged into crisis—whether by deeds of its own making or by circumstances beyond its control—the very future of the institution may seem to hang in the balance and the quality of its leadership is tested as never before. Drawing masterfully upon interviews with forty senior leaders from major research universities and upon an exhaustive survey of news stories, Ralph Gigliotti has given us both a path-breaking analysis of higher education crises and a remarkably insightful guide to surviving and surmounting them. President Emeritus and Distinguished Professor of History and Education, Rutgers University, Richard McCormick, Ph.D.

Selected New Books on Higher Education' compiled by Ki-Jana Deadwyler and Ruth Hammond
https://www.chronicle.com/article/Selected-New-Books-on-Higher/247370 Chronicle of Higher Education

The Best Way to Prepare for Disaster: Crisis Leadership and Higher Ed' interview with Ralph Gigliotti
https://evolllution.com/managing-institution/operations_efficiency/the-best-way-to-prepare-for-disaster-crisis-leadership-and-higher-ed/ The Evolllution

Crisis Leadership and the Higher Education Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak' by Ralph Gigliotti
https://evolllution.com/managing-institution/operations_efficiency/crisis-leadership-and-the-higher-education-response-to-the-covid-19-outbreak/ The Evolllution

This book offers something for everyone. The interview data from senior-level higher education administrators creates a certain intimacy. The real-life case studies and crisis headlines convey real urgency facing crisis leaders. The literature review and content analysis of crisis articles give credit to the relationship between scholarship and practice. With the end-of-chapter exercises, opportunities are abundant for self- and organizational reflective practice. In reviewing this book, I was drawn to the professional inference, especially in light of our doctoral program creating a new course focusing on crisis leadership. However, this book offers much more than a course reading—it allows for professional retrospections, personal remembrances relative to how one defines or describes crisis, and how and why one engages in certain decisions/actions/responses during specific events/situations. The Department Chair

Post-pandemic: The power of crisis management planning,' by Alaina G. Levine Science Magazine

Ralph A. Gigliotti is the director of leadership development and research in the Rutgers University Center for Organizational Leadership. He is the coauthor of A Guide for Leaders in Higher Education: Core Concepts, Competencies, and Tools and Leadership: Communication and Social Influence in Personal and Professional Contexts.

Contents
1          The Landscape of Crisis in Higher Education: Introduction and Context
2          The Social Construction of Crisis in Higher Education: The Perception of
Crisis, the Reality of Crisis
3          The Process of Defining and Labeling Phenomena as Crises
4          The Characterization and Categorization of Crises in Higher Education
5          Centrality of Communication in the Theory and Practice of Crisis Leadership
6          Crisis Adaptation of Leadership Competencies Scorecard for Leaders in Higher Education
7          Implications for Effective Crisis Leadership in Higher Education
Acknowledgments
Notes
References
Index

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