Mapping the Field of Shared Governance: Understanding the Landscape of Staff Representation Mechanisms in the American South

In this study, we introduce a new database documenting mechanisms of staff representation in shared governance within the southern region of the United States. We identified over 240 four-year, degree-granting institutions with evidence of a staff governing body and conducted a regression analysis to determine the relationship between staff representation and institutional characteristics. The results of our analysis revealed that certain institutional characteristics are correlated to the absence or presence of staff governing mechanisms including control, size, Carnegie classification, and AAUP membership. To our knowledge, this database is the first of its kind documenting staff governance on a regional scale and contributes to the important scholarship on professional staff working in higher education.