“Faces” and Complexities of Continuing Higher Education Units: A Postmodern Approach

Abstract

This study examines the dynamics of continuing higher education units within the sociopolitical context of higher education institutions. A qualitative approach to data collection and analysis was the study's design, while the theoretical frame was a postmodern, symbolic, theoretical approach to organizational studies. Results show that continuing education is a ubiquitous feature, found in every sphere of postsecondary education. However, various kinds of organizational configurations prevail. In addition, drawing on social and cultural anthropology as espoused by Bolman and Deal's four-frame model to “make sense of organization” at least six symbolic models and three organizational frameworks were construed as ways that leaders interpret their unit's organizational structure within their parent institution. The ability to visualize different models and organizational structures of continuing higher education divisions in today's educational environment is important to understand their division-parent relationships and their program development and delivery strategies.