Degree Name

EdD (Doctor of Education)

Program

Educational Leadership

Date of Award

May 1997

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the organizational structures and staffing patterns in campus activities offices or operations within selected institutions. These institutions were selected from the membership of the National Association of Campus Activities (NACA) during the 1994-95 academic year which are also public, Master's (Comprehensive) Universities and Colleges I and II institutions. Focus was placed on identifying the sizes and types of the campus activities departments at the institutions surveyed. A survey was developed and administered to a population of 355 institutions. The data from 269 (76%) responses were then carefully analyzed. Frequency analysis produced a number of revelations about dominant staffing patterns, titles, and size. Analysis indicated that there is a relationship between organizational structure and its staffing pattern in small institutions. A direct relationship was identified between the size and type of the staff and use of technology. There was no relationship between the funding base and staffing patterns or between organizational departmental structures and the size of the departmental budgets. Further, no relationships between organizational structure and funding bases or between the size and type of staff and the organizational structure. Conclusions were drawn concerning organization and staffing patterns. These included the fact that most institutions have campus activities departments with a director as the head, reporting to a vice president or dean. Activity fees are a primary source of funding in nearly all institutions. Few institutions have more than 9 professional staff and 12 clerical staff. Currently there is little faculty involvement in campus activities offices. Basic, mainstream technology is used to support the efforts of the offices. It is hoped that the study will be useful as a proactive management tool for those administrators in higher education who are structuring or restructuring administrative offices supporting the campus activities functions at institutions of higher education.

Document Type

Dissertation - unrestricted

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