Higher Education Strategic Partnerships: The Impact of Stellenbosch University's Community Interaction Agreements on Local Development
| dc.contributor.advisor | Newmark, Rona | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.author | Orr, David | en_ZA |
| dc.contributor.other | Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology | en_ZA |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2016-03-09T14:11:53Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2016-03-09T14:11:53Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2016-03 | |
| dc.description | Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2016 | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | ENGLISH ABSTRACT : In regions throughout the world, there has been little discrepancy that investments in education are critical for the development of the economic and social fabric of the local community. Although many studies have focused on returns of primary and secondary education, recently more academic focus has been applied to higher education as a means to increase economic growth and diminish poverty. As Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries share a disproportionate number of countries listed among the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) ratings in the world, it is imperative, more than ever, that higher education institutions in the region contribute to the economic growth and vitality of the surrounding community. In a recent study of higher education institutions within the SADC region, South Africa was the only country documented with sustainable and stable funding along with national higher education steering ability. Beginning in 2007, Stellenbosch University, located in the Western Cape of South Africa, began an unprecedented regional collaboration with the local municipality of Stellenbosch, and later in 2011, the regional municipality of Drakenstein in an attempt to formally engage the surrounding communities both socially and economically. As a result, the university signed memoranda of understanding (MOUs) outlining strategic partnerships that established a framework for the university to address economic growth, municipal development needs, joint social projects and integrating the joint initiatives into the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) of the municipalities. Within the South African context, it is clear, through the recent South African National Development Plan 2030 and King III Report, that universities will need to develop metrics to account for their broad range of impacts. Internationally, higher education institutions have responded by commissioning economic impact studies that report economic variables with little attention given to social impact. However, South African institutions of higher education should not emulate methodologies of these previous international economic impact studies, but instead develop new conceptual frameworks that relate to the unique social and economic impacts of South African universities. Furthermore, because of the lack of existing research concerning higher education and local development, little is known about the impact of university interaction agreements on surrounding communities. To overcome this current knowledge gap, the aim of this study sought to determine if there was a measurable impact of Stellenbosch University’s interaction agreements. This was accomplished through a literature overview of higher education policy analysis, higher education and community engagement, higher education and economic development and higher education economic impact studies. The research incorporates an integrated methodologies approach or FraIM developed by Plowright (2011) that compliments a mixed method design. Additionally, the first part of the study included a qualitative policy analysis using administrator questionnaires, followed by a quantitative review of Stellenbosch University’s community interaction efforts using the community interaction database along with project leader questionnaires and concluded with a quantitative university economic impact study. From the study results, a new integrated conceptual framework is proposed to capture the full socio-economic impact of higher education institutions. The emerging framework articulates the social and economic influence that higher education institutions bring to a community by giving each equivalent weight. Furthermore, the 2012-2013 data illustrated that Stellenbosch University has a substantial social and economic impact on the surrounding municipalities of Stellenbosch and Drakenstein. Additionally, the findings include a list of social and economic performance indicators related to university’s community engagement and economic development efforts. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : In streke regoor die wêreld word daar selde verskil oor die feit dat beleggings in onderwys noodsaaklik is vir die ontwikkeling van die ekonomiese en maatskaplike struktuur van die plaaslike gemeenskap. Alhoewel verskeie studies op die opbrengs van primêre en sekondêre onderwys gefokus het, word meer akademiese fokus algaande op hoër onderwys geplaas as ’n manier om ekonomiese groei te bevorder en armoede te verminder. Weens die feit dat die Suider-Afrikaanse Ontwikkelingsgemeenskapslande (SAOG-lande) ’n disproporsionele aantal van die lande met van die laagste graderings op die Menslike Ontwikkelingsindeks (MOI) in die wêreld insluit, is dit meer as ooit vantevore noodsaaklik dat hoëronderwysinstellings tot die ekonomiese groei en lewenskragtigheid van die omliggende gemeenskap bydra. In ’n onlangse studie oor hoëronderwysinstellings in die SAOG-streek is Suid-Afrika uitgewys as die enigste land met volhoubare en stabiele befondsing en nasionale hoëronderwysbestuursvermoë. Met die aanvang van 2007 het die Universiteit Stellenbosch, geleë in die Wes-Kaap in Suid-Afrika, ’n ongekende streeksamewerking met die plaaslike munisipaliteit van Stellenbosch, en later in 2011 die streeksmunisipaliteit van Drakenstein, in die lewe geroep in ’n poging om formeel by omliggende gemeenskappe in te skakel – op sowel maatskaplike as ekonomiese gebied. Dit het gelei tot die universiteit se ondertekening van Memorandums van Verstandhouding (MVV’s) wat strategiese vennootskappe skets vir die vestiging van ’n raamwerk vir die universiteit om ekonomiese groei, munisipale ontwikkelingsbehoeftes, gesamentlike maatskaplike projekte en die vereniging van gesamentlike inisiatiewe in die vorm van die munisipaliteite se Geïntegreerde Ontwikkelingsplan (GOP) aan te spreek. In die Suid-Afrikaanse geval blyk dit duidelik uit die onlangse Nasionale Ontwikkelingsplan 2030 en die King-verslag dat universiteite meetinstrumente moet ontwikkel om rekenskap te gee van hulle omvattende impak. Internasionaal het hoëronderwysinstellings gereageer deur ekonomiese impakstudies aan te vra wat verslag doen oor ekonomiese veranderlikes terwyl min aandag aan sosiale impak geskenk word. Suid-Afrikaanse hoëronderwysinstellings behoort egter nie bloot hierdie internasionale ekonomiese impakstudies se metodologieë navolg nie, maar eerder nuwe denkraamwerke skep wat aansluit by die unieke sosiale en ekonomiese impak van Suid-Afrikaanse universiteite. Weens die tekort aan bestaande navorsing oor hoër onderwys en plaaslike ontwikkeling bestaan daar min kennis oor die impak van universiteitsinteraksie-ooreenkomste op omliggende gemeenskappe. Om hierdie kennisgaping te oorkom, was die doel van hierdie studie om te bepaal of die Universiteit Stellenbosch se gemeenskapsinteraksie-ooreenkomste ’n meetbare impak gemaak het. Dit is bereik deur ’n literatuuroorsig van hoëronderwysbeleidsanalise, hoër onderwys en gemeenskapskakeling, hoër onderwys en ekonomiese ontwikkeling, en studies van hoër onderwys se ekonomiese impak. Die navorsing inkorporeer ’n benadering van geïntegreerde metodologieë, oftewel “FraIM”, wat deur Plowright (2011) ontwikkel is en ’n gemengdemetodebenadering aanvul. Die eerste deel van die studie het gebruik gemaak van ’n kwalitatiewe beleidsanalise deur middel van onderhoude met administrateurs. Dis is opgevolg deur ’n kwantitatiewe oorsig van die Universiteit Stellenbosch se gemeenskapsinteraksiebedrywighede met behulp van die gemeenskapsinteraksiedatabasis en projekleiervraelyste. Ter afsluiting is daar ’n kwantitatiewe studie van die universiteit se ekonomiese impak. Vanuit die navorsingsresultate word ’n nuwe, geïntegreerde denkraamwerk voorgestel om die volle sosio-ekonomiese impak van hoëronderwysinstellings te omvat. Die raamwerk wat voortspruit, artikuleer die sosiale en ekonomiese uitwerking wat hoëronderwysinstellings na ’n gemeenskap bring deur elk ’n ekwivalente gewig te gee. Verder het die 2012-2013 data aangetoon dat die Universiteit Stellenbosch ’n betekenisvolle sosiale en ekonomiese impak op die omliggende munisipaliteite van Stellenbosch en Drakenstein het. Die bevindinge sluit ’n bykomende lys sosiale en ekonomiese prestasie-aanduiders in wat verwant is aan die universiteit se pogings tot gemeenskapsinteraksie en ekonomiese ontwikkeling. | af_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/98376 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_ZA | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | Stellenbosch University | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Stellenbosch University -- Community development | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | UCTD | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Stellenbosch University -- Social Impact (SI) | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Community engagement -- South Africa -- Western Cape | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Community development -- South Africa -- Western Cape | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Economic development projects -- South Africa -- Western Cape | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | University Community Interaction Agreements | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Universities -- Strategic partnerships | en_ZA |
| dc.title | Higher Education Strategic Partnerships: The Impact of Stellenbosch University's Community Interaction Agreements on Local Development | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_ZA |