Running head: FRAMES MEMO 3

Frames Memo 3

Jessica Zuber

Bridgewater State University

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Introduction

The study abroad enrollment rates at Stonehill College have been decreasing

each year. For many years the director of International Programs at Stonehill College

has said that Stonehill has been an institution that students choose because of their

study abroad programs. Their mission is to connect students through study abroad,

research, internship, and service-learning programs all over the world . By gaining these

experiences, students expand their international awareness as well as apply their

interests in a global context. It is the job of the office of international programs to

support these students, before, during, and after their time abroad . Abroad experiences

empower students to make change and become leaders in the community (Stonehill,

2020).

The purpose of this paper is to examine how a stronger study abroad program

can be implemented at Stonehill College through Bolman and Deal’s multi-frame

perspective. Bolman and Deal synthesize leadership into four frames (structural, human

resource, political, and symbolic). This paper will predominantly focus on structural,

political, and human resources as Bolman & Deal (2017) define multi frame leadership

as the use of at least three frames (Turley, 2003) . This paper will address the problem

through these frames followed by a solution .

There are currently three staff members in the office of international programs

including a director, assistant director, and an administrative assistant . There is also a

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graduate assistant and a few undergraduate peer advisors . It is the job of all staff to

educate potential study abroad students on which program will best fit their needs . By

using a predominantly structural approach, a stronger study abroad program can be

implemented at Stonehill College. Using the structural frame is the best approach for

this specific problem because it focuses on environment and restructure (Bolman, &

Deal, 2017). Other key concepts for the structural frame include goals, policies, rules,

and technology (Bolman, & Deal, 2017). By using this approach, the study abroad

program will devise strategies to enhance performance and achieve goals (Bolman, &

Deal, 2017).

Problem

Studying abroad provides benefits such as personal growth, employability, and is

an important tool in increasing overall student’s retention and recruitment (Trower &

Lehmann ,2017). Having a lower number of students studying abroad at Stonehill

College is a problem because it also means that enrollment rates are down in general

meaning less tuition (Trower & Lehmann ,2017). This means that there will be less

funding for all activities on campus (Trower & Lehmann ,2017). Stonehill College’s

office of international programs has also just recently started an exchange program

where students can come from other countries to study at Stonehill for their

undergraduate years. Since this is a new program with less students and less tuition it

may not continue to run.

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As previously mentioned, studying abroad can open many opportunities . These

opportunities include but are not limited to learning a new culture, becoming more

globally minded, and communicating better across national boundaries. With less

students studying abroad they are losing out on an opportunity to become a more well-

rounded student (Clarke & Wright, 2014).

Research

Stonehill has been an institution that students have picked solely for its study

abroad program, but lately its numbers have been down, yet other institutions' numbers

are on the rise (Redden,2019). Some students have said that studying abroad simply

just does not fit into their schedule, or that they waited too long to apply (Chang, 2012) .

According to Redden (2019) students may not want to study abroad as much because

of the impact it has on the environment (Redden,2019). According to Redden (2019)

the long study abroad trips to Europe, China, or South America etc. have a big impact

on the environment with all the fuel it takes . Studying abroad is culturally enriching for

each person that chooses to, but during a climate change it has an impact

(Redden,2019).

On the contrary there are some students who will choose to study abroad in the

hopes of learning more about climate change. According to a New Zealand case study

there is a study abroad program designed for those interested in in infusing

sustainability ideas into the curriculum (Cusick, 2009). The author John Cusick (2009)

suggests that programs such as these which are in support of sustainability provide
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transformative learning experiences that invest in the well being of people and places

(Cusick, 2009).

Recommendations

To make the study abroad program more environmentally friendly Stonehill can

first start with an informational session to give students an awareness on where they go

and the impact it has on the climate (Redden,2019). In the session it should also be

mentioned how often a student travels while abroad also has an impact (Redden,2019).

The office of international programs can also offer more local places to study at, or even

bring in international professors so students can still get that sense of a new culture

without having to leave the country (Redden,2019). Lastly, creating longer programs

over three- or so-week programs will reduce the carbon footprint so there are not as

many flights going back and forth (Redden,2019). Many institutions have been

implementing shorter trips which may be a reason student are more willing to study

abroad (Lenkaitis, 2019). Stonehill could implement shorter more local trips for those

students who are not as willing to be away for long periods of time .

At some universities such as Kansas State the idea of studying abroad is

implemented as early as freshman year (Shifting Perceptions, 2020) . If Stonehill

implemented this into the first-year seminar courses the plan to begin studying abroad

could happen much faster, and more knowledge would be received earlier on . As

previously mentioned, many students have said that they did not plan accordingly to

study abroad. By implementing the idea of studying abroad as early as freshman year
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students may be more likely to take the classes, they need at Stonehill and save the

generic courses for when they are abroad.

Structural Frame

When looking at creating a stronger study abroad program for Stonehill College

through a structural frame, the first item that may be addressed is looking at the goals of

the program and who determines those (Turley, 2003) . In this case the goals are

determined by the director of International Programs with the help of the assistant

director. Since addressing the issue of creating a stronger program would involve

changing and determining new goals it would be wise to start speaking with the director

of the program first (Clarke, Flaherty, Wright, & McMillen, 2009). This conversation may

reflect determining new study abroad destinations, and the most efficient ways to relay

information to students (Clarke et al., 2009) .

Since the roles in this office are well defined the responsibilities to create the

change would fall to the administrative assistant with the advice from director and

assistant director (Clarke et al., 2009). For example, It will be the administrative

assistant who coordinates the times and meeting spaces for informational sessions .

Usually those who conduct the informational sessions are the graduate assistant and

peer advisors. For the most part there is a division of labor in the office which fits well

into the structural frame (Bolman & Deal, 2017).

When getting the structure right everything else should fall into place (Bolman &

Deal, 2017). Right now, according to the study abroad director there is a structural flaw
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in the office of international programs because the number of students enrolling is

decreasing.

It is the current goal of the office to get enrollment numbers up . Bolman & Deal

state that successful organizations can do this either vertically which is the formal chain

of command, or laterally, which is through meetings, committees, and coordinating roles

and structures. There is no ideal structure, and the best structure depends on an

organization's goals, strategies, technology, people, and environment (Bolman & Deal,

2017). It is about finding what works best for the organization, and not against it

(Bolman & Deal, 2017).

Currently I believe a lateral structure would be best suited . There needs to be a

lot of teamwork, collaboration, and motivation to correct the structural issues and things

will get worse before they get better . Through meetings, committees, and coordinating

roles and structures I hope to incorporate a new structure where information on studying

abroad is implemented into first year curriculum courses . This will give students an

opportunity to plan accordingly, ask questions, and make suggestions .

When restructuring the Office of International programs, it will be important to

remember that there are structural dilemmas and not to make anything worse (Bolman

& Deal, 2017). If key responsibilities are not clearly defined and dispersed properly this

could happen. No employee should be under or overworked. It will be all about finding a

balance. This needs to be a top down structure where directors are willing to create new
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roles and disperse work accordingly to make the necessary changes (Bolman & Deal,

2017).

Structural change is rarely easy, but working with travel it is constantly changing,

and it is necessary to make these structural changes to provide the best information and

support to students (Patel and Hamlin, 2015). By creating new goals, curriculums, and

ideas for the Office of international programs the purpose and goal is to increase the

enrollment rate (Patel and Hamlin, 2015). By doing this I hope there is a domino effect

where Stonehill College will once again be a school student choose for its study abroad

program and increasing enrollment rates all around .

Political Frame

From a political point of view, when money and students are plentiful

administration can spend time innovating new programs, but now when there is a lower

amount of students enrolling and scarce resources so programs may close, and staff

may be laid off (Bolman & Deal, 2017). The political frame focuses a lot on power,

conflict, coalitions, scarcity, differences, and bargaining negotiation . In the office of

international programs, it is a political problem because the main person of power is the

director, but she also must get her ideas approved from someone higher up (Bolman &

Deal, 2017). If they are not seeing eye to eye this may cause conflict. By bargaining,

negotiating, and coalition building during meetings a decision can be made on how to

best serve the study abroad program.

Unlike a structural approach which happens from the top down, political starts

from the ground up (Bolman & Deal, 2017). Small groups are constantly making
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decisions and sending out messages to other groups, and goals do not necessarily

need to be set at the top (Bolman & Deal, 2017) . By gaining power the office of

international programs can make decisions with purpose on how to build a better

program and to make sure decisions are implemented (Bolman & Deal, 2017) .

Politics is necessary to create efficient institutions. The first step to doing this for

the study abroad program at Stonehill is to agenda set, map out the political terrain,

network, and negotiate (Bolman & Deal,2017) . This would look like setting a time for

everything to be implemented, and what exactly it is that needs to be implemented . For

example, creating a new curriculum to be a part of the first-year courses . The study

abroad office would then need to find the right people to talk to (vice president/

president) and negotiate what it is they want (Bolman & Deal, 2017) .

Human Resources

The main role of the human resources frame is the relationship between people

and organizations (Bolman & Deal, 2017) . The students are number one in a human

resource frame so finding out what works best for the student such as times for

meetings, and study abroad destinations are top priority (Hormann, 2018). Sometimes

the fit between a person and an organization is poor which will lead to suffering . By

investing in employees, they will hopefully find meaning, and satisfaction in their work .

The office of international programs is a human resources problem because they may

not be investing in their employees. They can have highly motivated and skilled workers

by making the decision to invest in them. This starts with hiring the right people, but can
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also be done through training, and professional developments . The office of

international programs will profit from investing in its employees because there will be a

more efficient use of their talent and energy (Bolman & Deal, 2017). This may lead to

greater ideas on how to improve the study abroad program .

Strategies

From looking at the structural, political, and human resources frame I

believe the best strategy will be to first in a strategic sense come up with new more

attainable goals within the office such as creating new study abroad destinations as well

as new ways to convey information to students . This could look like an informational

session on where students can go, or better yet in a political sense, it can be

incorporated into the curriculum of a first-year students schedule where they will learn

the benefits of studying abroad. This way studying abroad will be in the students mind

early on, and they can plan accordingly to make it happen . For those who are interested

brochures and follow up sessions may be provided such as one on one appointments

with a study abroad advisor. By having highly motivated employees I believe these

solutions can be made.

Conclusion

Stonehill needs to do more to get students interested in their abroad program as

according to the director of International Programs, not as many students are choosing

the institution because of the abroad program itself . It will take an honest, and informed

program director to give the students the information they need . Stonehill needs to look
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at what more can be done to get students involved as well as considering the

environmental impacts. Studying abroad is a unique source of admissions for

universities and it is not a program that should be cut back on . By focusing on and

understanding these issues a conversation can be started with students to educate

them, and to come up with a plan on studying abroad (Redden, ,2019).

By using the frames, I am confident Stonehill can build a better study abroad

program where information is given to students in a new and more productive way . The

predominant frame I see being of assistance is the structural frame as this is mostly a

structural problem where new ideas and goals need to be implemented . From a political

and human resource point of view though there is nothing wrong with giving staff more

training or more power to better the situation.

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References

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Chang, D. College students’ perceptions of studying abroad and their readiness. Asia

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Clarke, I., Flaherty, T. B., Wright, N. D., & McMillen, R. M. (2009). Student Intercultural

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Lenkaitis, C. A. (2019). Rethinking Study Abroad and Intercultural Competence. In

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Street, L. 320 W. (n.d.). International Programs. Retrieved from

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Leader Behaviors Insights from French and British Educational Sectors, Journal

of Business Ethics, 10.1007/s10551-015-2909-5, 145, 1, (157-182), (2015).

Trower, H., & Lehmann, W. (2017). Strategic escapes: Negotiating motivations of

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Educational Research Journal, 43(2), 275–289. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3258

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