Our 5-year experiment with teaching and evaluating an inquiry course has led us to conclude that inquiry is a potent pedagogical tool in higher education, encouraging students to become self-directed and engaged learners. This article offers key ingredients and procedures for designing an inquiry-based course. It provides a pragmatic model of inquiry that describes the structure and function of such a course and the goals and learning objectives for students. This model of inquiry is widely applicable and will help faculty members from a variety of disciplines develop an innovative way of engaging and teaching students.

Limited empirical data on the roles associated with boards of directors in nonprofit organizations are available, yet understanding the work of boards is vital to ensure the roles desired by organizational members and the roles required by the organization are being fulfilled. The roles or functions of boards in nonprofit organizations, as found in the management literature, were used to explore the roles associated with a sample of nonprofit amateur sport organizations. Data were generated from a survey of executive directors, volunteer presidents, and volunteer board members of sport organizations housed at Ontario's Provincial Sport Centre in Toronto. The survey data yielded a 4 factor subscale providing support for a theoretical perspective in assessing roles of the board in mission, planning, executive director, and community relations areas. Similarities and differences of respondents by gender and position on ratings of importance and performance for the board roles were explored with implications for board development discussed.

This paper is an exploration of the multiple realities of women’s work experiences in coaching and athletic management positions. Eleven women who had previously coached or directed women’s athletics programs were interviewed using a semi-structured approach. Three general categories emerged from the data — Support, Gender Differences, and Change. The work experiences reflect problems the women encountered at work, how organizations can be empowering, and the impact empowered women can have on the social construction of work. Based upon the data, we suggest that the individual search for empowerment takes different forms, yet also acknowledges that systemic changes must take place in order to improve the work environment for women. These findings are significant because they validate women’s experiences and contribute to the understanding of work experiences of those who are underrepresented and often left out of key circles of power and control.

The purpose of this study was to develop a framework for identifying the motivations of board members in nonprofit organizations. Building on previous work of board member motivations (Searle, 1989;Inglis, 1994) and motivations of direct service volunteers (Clary and others, 1998)

Within intercollegiate athletic work environments, the retention of coaches and athletic administrators continues to be an issue. Understanding the factors considered important for retaining coaching and athletic management positions has potential significance for reversing the decline of the number of individuals, in particular, women, from these positions, and for increasing the attractiveness of such career pathways. This study developed a scale of retention factors that resulted in three empirically supported factors—Work Balance and Conditions, Recognition and Collegial Support, and Inclusivity. The factors were derived through principal components analysis with varimax rotation using a sample of 359 Canadian and American intercollegiate coaches and athletic administrators. These factors support the need to consider gender and power relations in the search for fuller explanations of women's experiences at work.