ABSTRACT
Volume I of Understanding College and University Organization: Theories for Effective Policy and Practice is dedicated to the study of alternative ways of theoretically conceiving of the more stable and persisting conditions that comprise higher education institutions. Our hope has been to provide different ways of thinking about the more enduring organizational components with which college and university leaders at all levels must contend as a backdrop to dealing with more dynamic elements. To use a musical metaphor, our contention is that the stable elements act as key signatures and signposts of harmony and rhythm. The institution must act harmoniously and within orderly boundaries for propitious and efficient action, yet permit dissonant variation in both that give life and freshness to the entire educational enterprise. In Volume II, we take up those more dynamic and dissonant elements directly.
