UCEA Centre for the Study of Leadership and Ethics >> Background and Governance Structure
The UCEA CSLE was established in June 1996 by Dr. Paul Begley who served as its Executive Director until his retirement in June 2011. At the time of its establishment, the CSLE was housed in the Department of Theory and Policy Studies at OISE/University of Toronto. During the early years, CSLE was operated in partnership with the University of Virginia. From 1996 to 2001, Paul Begley and Margaret Grogan (now dean at Claremont Graduate School in California) co-directed the center.
In 2003 CSLE was relocated to Penn State University and the University of Virginia ceased its formal involvement as a sponsor of the center. However, Professor Eric Bredo of the University of Virginia continued on as a member of the center’s board of trustees.
In early 2009, a proposal was tabled at a business meeting of the board of trustees to reorganize the governance structure of the center in anticipation of Paul Begley’s return to Canada and appointment to the faculty of Nipissing University. The intent of the new governance structure was to ensure the continuation of the center’s work, reconfirm Paul Begley as Executive Director for a term of three years, and formally incorporate within the center organization seven research centers located at universities in five countries: Australia; Canada; Hong Kong, China; Sweden; and the United States. Faculty and students associated with each of these institutions had been long-standing and active contributors to the CSLE for many years, and in many respects, the new governance structure formally recognized their critical role as associates of the CSLE.
Effective October 3, 2009, therefore, the Center for the Study of Leadership and Ethics (CSLE), housed in the Schulich School of Education at Nipissing University, was officially designated the headquarters of a consortium of seven international research centers operating as the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Program Center for the Study of Leadership and Ethics. This resolution was among several passed by the center’s Board of Trustees at a business meeting held at Penn State University during the 14th Annual Values and Leadership Conference. The UCEA Program Center for the Study of Leadership and Ethics became officially a multi-institution and international organization. Paul Begley, Professor of Educational Leadership at Nipissing University, was appointed Executive Director of the reconstituted UCEA program center organization effective October 2009.
This change generated several positive outcomes for the seven associated institutions as well as the UCEA membership. These included: an expanded international profile for the UCEA and seven center affiliates, access for the faculty and students to a large network of scholars in seven or more countries, a new quarterly refereed journal entitled the Journal for Authentic Leadership (JALE), the existing Values and Ethics in Educational Administration (VEEA) journal, the opportunity for students and faculty to become involved in the design and delivery of an annual international conference, formal connections with multiple universities that currently operate doctoral programs, and facilitated access to multiple universities in support of study leaves, visiting scholar appointments, and research data collection in other countries.
As part of this process, Nipissing University became an affiliate member of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA). Affiliate membership of Nipissing University within the UCEA was approved at the Spring 2010 meeting of the UCEA executive. The Australian Catholic University and Umea University have similarly begun discussions leading to applying for affiliate status within UCEA.
In June 2011, upon the retirement of Paul Begley, Chris Branson was elected by the Board of Trustees as Executive Director and took the duties of Executive Director to University of Waikato in Hamilton, New Zealand, although the governance structure established in 2009 remains in place.