Management Culture in Higher Education Is Out of Control, and People Are Dying
Institutional betrayal is ruining careers and taking lives.
I was saddened to read recently that Antoinette Candia-Bailey, Vice President of Student Affairs at Lincoln University, died by suicide on January 8, 2024. Before her suicide, she had complained that she was being bullied by the university’s president. Racism may have contributed to the president’s treatment of Candia-Bailey, and that is currently being investigated, but the influence of toxic management culture and institutional betrayal should also be considered.
Candia-Bailey complained about being set up to fail, and I know exactly how that feels. Some of my supervisors seemed to enjoy making me struggle with impossible tasks and unrealistic deadlines. It is pretty common for managers in higher education to disregard the feelings of workers and to be positively cruel and/or neglectful.
If you’ve never experienced it before, try to imagine the panic and fear a person must feel when they realize that the people responsible for their wellbeing seem to hate them no matter what they do. Imagine the despair teachers must feel when the person responsible for guiding their career and safeguarding their livelihood ends up being their tormentor. It is a betrayal on par…
