Establishing a women’s leadership council in Lebanon

The challenge

Researchers have identified a need to address persistent challenges globally of promoting women to leadership positions in higher education. In Lebanon, researchers found that women filled just 15 of 65 dean positions in higher education. Among the challenges faced by women aspiring to academic leadership positions, according to researchers, are both a lack of professional development and the collective network support needed to elevate their presence and voice.

The approach

Collaborative Approach to Promoting Women's Leadership in Academia: Engaging Lebanese and American Faculty will support the development of a Women’s Leadership Council to elevate the voice of women in higher education by supporting their leadership goals, as well as creating a network of advocates to support the goals of aspiring women leaders. 

The project is led by Principal Investigator Tanya Pinkerton, a clinical assistant professor with ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. Co-principal investigators are Elizabeth Frias, clinical associate professor at MLFTC, and Nicole Thompson, professor and vice dean of the division of teacher preparation at MLFTC.

This cross-national project has been designed to support sustainable changes by investigating barriers to the equitable inclusion of women in leadership spaces, as well as strategies for overcoming these barriers. Haigazian University, a sub-awardee for this project, will play a pivotal role in supporting cross-national engagement through facilitators who will co-design and co-facilitate activities.

The Council will provide a structured space for members (10 from ASU and 10 from Haigazian University) to develop a leadership vision, cultivate their leadership skills and create an action plan for creating innovative change through the lens of Principled Innovation™. The Principled Innovation framework was originally developed at MLFTC and is now ASU’s newest design aspiration. It helps educators, leaders, students and communities imagine new concepts, catalyze ideas and form new solutions, guided by principles that create positive change for humanity.

Collaborative opportunities through the council project will include virtual and in-person discussions and conferences, such as:

• A series of six virtual roundtable discussions that include participants from Haigazian University  and Arizona State University. The purpose will be to enhance the partnership between faculty through on-going and consistent discourse.
• Two in-person symposiums to integrate approaches and strategies aimed at elevating the voice of women in leadership spaces. The symposiums will include undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty members.

MLFTC will also leverage its Learning Futures Collaboratives, which engage students and faculty in cross-disciplinary dialogues related to a broad range of global topics in education, such as refugee education, the futures of high schools, education and sustainability, and artificial intelligence in education. The Council’s long-term intended impact is to build a sustainable network of advocates for women leaders in higher education. Additionally, the Council will serve as a model of how future institutions may partner to offer collaborative solutions related to the topic of promoting women’s leadership in academia.