Higher Education Governance Structures and Operational Efficiency and Effectiveness of 4-Year Public Institutions

This study benchmarks 4-year public institutions in the Southern Regional Education Board to determine if there are significant differences between the institutions based on efficiency and effectiveness scores within the types of governance structures in operation among the states. Efficiency and effectiveness scores are also used to determine if there are significant differences between institutions based on state appropriation levels. In this quantitative study, data envelopment analysis (DEA) was used to collapse selected institutional data reported to IPEDS into effectiveness and efficiency scores which were then used as the dependent variables. The variable returns to scale (VRS) model was used with an input orientation to measure efficiency, while the output orientation was used to measure effectiveness. Multivariate analyses and Pearson correlations were then performed using the Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS).;There are no significant differences in institutional efficiency and effectiveness scores compared by coordinating agency, governing board, or other state governance structural arrangement types. The relationship between efficiency and effectiveness scores is strongest for those institutions governed by other structural arrangements. Institutions in lower levels of state appropriations tended to score significantly higher in efficiency than their counterparts in the mid-range and highest levels of state appropriations.;The accountability for institutional efficiency and effectiveness seems to rest primarily within the institutions governed. The significance of the study applies to state legislatures, state governance structures, and the leadership of public institutions who want to improve institutional performance through identifying optimal levels of inputs and outputs related to the efficiency and effectiveness metrics presented in this study.