Crisis Response in Higher Education: Interpreting Leadership Communication

Abstract

Whether it be an environmental disaster, civil unrest, or a public health emergency, higher education leaders must be ready to address and respond to any crises threatening their institutions or university communities. The purpose of this study was to gain understanding regarding how university presidents and provosts respond and communicate during times of crisis. Using an interpretive policy analysis approach, this research aimed to reveal how leadership messaging during times of crisis could be interpreted by various stakeholder groups and to measure how equitable outcomes were addressed in the communications. This qualitative research study gathered leadership statements regarding the COVID-19 pandemic from multiple universities and leaders to observe the communication strategies utilized and to study common practices amongst the group. Coding and analysis revealed little focus on equity-based decision-making by university leaders and that equitable outcomes were rarely stated as a priority. Further analysis revealed three main themes within the crisis messaging: administrative response, community response, and empathetic response. By reviewing and understanding strategies for communicating during times of crisis and recognizing how messaging could be interpreted by different stakeholders, university leaders can learn best practices for how to communicate and engage with their communities to better engage students, staff, and faculty so that they can get through the crisis at hand with the best outcomes. Keywords: higher education crisis response, crisis communication, leadership, communication strategies, equitable outcomes, decision-making