345peer-reviewed and publishes original research articles in addition to book reviews
and PhD thesis abstracts related to Saudi higher education.
The journal has discussed many issues related to the challenges and development
of Saudi higher education. In fact, the academic freedom in the light of the Saudi
higher education regulations, the perception of students for aptitude tests of
NCAHE, the women leadership in higher education, the alternative financing ven-
ues for Saudi higher education, the role of community colleges in Saudi higher
education, the pros and cons of the prep year in Saudi university education and the
impact of King Abdullah Scholarship Program (KASP) on Saudi higher education
are some of the area topics that received more attention in research. These and other
related topics have been discussed in papers published at the SJHE. The Arabic
language articles published in SJHE complement the article published in a monthly
four-page issue entitled “Selected Readings in Higher Education”, published by
CHERS as well, targeting the non-English speaking in the Saudi higher education
research community.
The ALC in Saudi Higher Education
The Academic Leadership Center (ALC) is considered, at present, the main stage
for the Saudi higher education research and leadership community in Saudi Arabia;
see Al-Swailem and Elliott ( 2013 ) and ALC ( 2016 ). The Ministry of Higher
Education at that time, now Ministry of Education, has established this centre in
2009 in recognition for the need of building and enhancing leadership capacity in
higher education. Also, ALC existence acknowledges the significant role and fea-
sible impact of learned and well-trained leadership on quality and successful man-
agement of higher education institutions. The centre has stated its mission as “To
provide developmental programs and assistance in leadership for higher education
institutions, administrators, and leaders enabling them to be more successful and
effective”. The ALC main goals are to develop leadership culture, enhance effective
leadership and network leaders and institutions with good practices at locally and
globally. The ALC is growing slowly but firmly and expanding its activities to
include more issues of higher education and additional spectrum of various levels of
leadership in Saudi public universities. The ALC arranged several developmental
activities to address the need of Saudi higher decision makers and educators. The
ALC has used various means to achieve its goals including conducting workshops
for Saudi university presidents, vice-presidents, academic deans, department chairs
and promising future leaders. The ALC is also conducting training on various levels
of higher education leadership skills as well as running training-the-trainers pro-
gramme to increase its impact through growing number of its associates and fel-
lows. Moreover, the ALC is involved in other activities such as conferences,
symposia, mentorship programs, consultation, specialized interest group meetings,
seminars and webinars.
19 The Regeneration Aspects for Higher Education Research in the Kingdom of Saudi...