Senior University Administrators' Perceptions of Purpose and Value Transmission Based on Organizational Identity at their Home and Branch Campus

Abstract

In recent decades, colleges and universities have witnessed a change in the demographics of students applying for admission. Once the domain of 18-25 year old individuals who lived on campus and attended full-time classes, colleges and universities are experiencing an increase in non-traditional students: older individuals with mature careers seeking continuing education in a convenient location. In an effort to reach these kinds of students, and to make higher education more generally accessible, many colleges and universities have expanded into multi-campus environments by opening branch campuses. The primary question of many multi-campus leaders is how to organize the inter-campus relationship between home and branch campuses. Insight is lacking on how the main campus should structure the organization to disseminate values and purpose for effective mission fulfillment at the branches. By examining senior leader perceptions of organizational purpose and value through the lens of Multiple Organizational Identity theory, this study enables home and branch campus leaders to organize the inter-campus relationship for long-term success. The purpose of this study is to understand how senior administrators transmit a university’s purposes and values from the home campus to the branch campus.

This study utilizes a qualitative case study methodology to explore the perceptions of senior administrators from Texas A&M University at the home campus in College Station, Texas and the branch campus in Galveston, Texas. Data were collected through document analysis, observation, and fifteen semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was conducted using the constant comparative method in which four layers of coding—open coding, structural coding, axial coding, and theoretical coding—provided a detailed examination of purpose and value transmission. The results indicate that purpose and value transmission between a home and branch campus can be understood and explained through by the Transmission Matrix developed by this researcher. Furthermore, the matrix provides a framework through which administrators can organize the intercampus relationship for long-term success.