ASSESSMENT OF UNIVERSITY SENATE CONTRIBUTIONS TO EFFECTIVE GOVERNANCE IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN RIVERS STATE

Abstract

This study assessed university senate contributions to effective governance in public universities in Rivers State. The study was guided by three objectives from which three objectives and three research questions were derived. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. The population of the study was 1,318 members of senate in the three public universities in Rivers State, which are University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State University and Ignatius Ajuru University of Education. The sample size of the study was 497 members of senate. This comprised 247 members of senate in federal university (University of Port Harcourt) and 250 members of senate in state universities. The instrument for data collection was a self-designed questionnaire titled ‘Assessment of the University Senate Contributions to Effective University Governance Questionnaire '. The research instrument was validated by three experts, two in the field of Educational Management and one in Measurement and Evaluation in Rivers State University. The internal consistency of the instrument was determined using the Cronbach's alpha method. Reliability coefficients of 0.81, 0.86 and 0.77 were obtained for the various clusters of the instrument. The research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study revealed among others that university Senate formulates policies that promote quality teaching and learning and sets standards for safeguarding the integrity of degrees and diplomas awarded in public universities in Rivers State to a high extent. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that Vice-Chancellors and university management of public universities in Rivers State should institute systematic and regular curriculum review processes through the University Senate, ensuring that academic programmes are periodically updated to reflect emerging knowledge, professional requirements, and the evolving needs of the labour market.