Public & private universities in Kenya : new challenges, issues & achievements / Kilemi Mwiria ... [and others].

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Mwiria, Kilemi.

Partnership for Higher Education in Africa.

Series:

Higher education in Africa

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Universities and colleges--Kenya.

Universities and colleges.

Kenya.

Physical Description:

xviii, 204 pages : illustrations, map ; 24 cm.

Other Title:

Public and private universities in Kenya

Place of Publication:

Oxford : James Currey ; Nairobi : East African Educational Publishers, 2007.

Summary:

This is a two-part volume on how public and private universities in Kenya are confronting the reform of their institutions in the context of four decades of rapid growth of the higher education sector as a whole.

The book contains an introduction by Professor Kilemi Mwiria, Assistant Minister of Education in Kenya, which provides an update on developments in Kenya since January 2003 when a new government took power in a peaceful electoral transition that rejected one-party rule.

The volume reviews the history of higher education in Kenya and details the recent emergence of private universities, most of them with a Christian religious orientation, as major players in the provision of tertiary-level education. Both parts of the volume emphasize widening access to higher education at the same time as ensuring equity. They detail how both the public and private institutions wrestle with questions of tuition costs and delivering a curriculum that meets the needs of students and of Kenya's economy.

Kenyan scholars were commissioned by the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations of the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa to carry out the studies, using a methodology that incorporates feedback from the institutions and involving a broad range of stakeholders. For the private universities, the Ford Foundation funded a group of young scholars as a way of encouraging first-rate work from younger researchers.

Contents:

Introduction Kenyan Universities in the Coming Decades: The Policy Intention / Kilemi Mwiria 1

A new dawn 1

The inherited legacy 1

Governance & management 4

Quality & curriculum reform 6

Expansion & integration 8

Access & equity 9

Finance & financial management 10

Service outreach & engagement with society 11

I Public University Reform in Kenya: Mapping The Key Changes Of The Last Decade / Kilemi Mwiria, Njuguna Ng'ethe 13

Acknowledgements 14

1 Kenyan Universities in the Coming Decades 15

Background to the study 15

Historical context 18

2 Reforms Related to Access, Equity, Quality, & Relevance 23

Access 23

Equity-related reforms 32

Reforms & the problem of quality 37

Relevance, research & community outreach programmes 44

New delivery mechanisms 49

ICT in public universities 52

3 Reforms Related to Governance/Management & Planning 54

New Structures of governance & management 54

Strategic planning 55

Staffing in Public universities 56

The management of human resources 61

Health & recreation activities 62

Management of student needs/affairs 63

Strategies for managing HIV/AIDS 64

4 Reforms Related to University Financing 66

Cost-sharing & the unit-cost system 66

Income-generating activities & privately sponsored students 68

Cost-reduction measures & constraints 70

Financial enhancement & management measures 72

5 Motivation for & Management of Reforms 76

Motivation for reform 76

The role of intermediary bodies in mediating reforms 87

The management of reform initiatives 94

6 Impact of the Reform Process 99

Increased access 99

Equity 99

Quality 100

Relevance 102

Kenya's quest for industrialization 102

Planning & management of university programmes 103

Utilization of financial, human & physical resources 104

Challenging the relevance of the Joint Admissions Board 105

Cost-sharing measures & student welfare 105

Public perception of the public universities 107

7 Concluding Observations & Questions Raised 108

Improving the reform process & winning support 110

Lessons learned & questions raised 112

Final thought: Are the reforms innovative or transformative? 116

Appendix Research Methodology 119

II Private Provision Of Higher Education In Kenya: Trends & Issues In Four Universities / Daniel Wesonga, Charles Ngome, Douglas Ouma-Odero & Violet Wawire 121

Acknowledgements 122

1 Origins of Private Higher Education in Kenya 123

The establishment & location of private universities 123

Rationale for the study 125

The four case studies 125

2 Accreditation, Governance & Management 127

Accreditation status 127

Governance structures 127

Management of human resources 128

Inter-university networking & linkages 128

Management of student affairs 133

Strategies for the management of HIV/AIDS 136

Extension & community services 137

3 Issues of Access & Equity 139

Access to university education 140

Equity of access 145

Gender equity in administration, teaching & research 150

University policies & support systems 152

4 Curriculum & Learning Systems 156

Academic Programmes 156

Curriculum delivery & teaching resources 160

Relevance & quality of new Programmes 161

Student evaluation 163

Faculty/student ratios 163

Research 164

Library facilities 165

University physical facilities 167

Co-curricular activities 168

5 Information & Communication Technologies 169

ICT resources in the private universities 169

Strategic plans & policies 170

Utilization & management 171

Benefits & constraints 175

6 Financing of Private Universities in Kenya 177

Sources of university finance 177

Recurrent expenditure trends in the private universities 183

The cost of private university education 186

The financial status of private universities 189

Financial management strengths 190

7 Recommendations 192

Accreditation, governance & management 192

Financing 194

Appendix 196

Research methodology 196

Data collection 196

Dissemination seminars 197.

Notes:

Published in association with Partnership for Higher Education in Africa.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 199-204).

ISBN:

0852554427

9780852554425

OCLC:

70986786