This case study was an analysis of three servant leader higher education faculty called servant professors. This research hoped to contribute to the preliminary discussions of servant leadership as an educational leadership paradigm for faculty in higher education in the new millennium. The primary research question for this study was: What is the praxis of servant professors? Furthermore, three additional research questions guided this study. How does a higher education servant professor define servant leadership? How does a higher education servant professor apply servant leadership in her or his classroom? What occurs in a higher education classroom led by a servant professor?
For this qualitative case study of purposefully selected self-identified servant professors as much information as possible anchored in real-life higher education classroom situations was gathered to analyze, interpret, and theorize about the dynamics and context characteristics of the phenomenon of servant leadership. An analytical deductive coding process utilizing classification schemes borrowed from a source found in the literature review was employed. Constant comparison analysis was a secondary complementary data analysis strategy.
The characteristics of the higher education faculty members who self-identified as servant professors included the original ten as cited by Spears from Greenleaf. Additional characteristics were found and synthesized into a list of eight themes of servant professors as demonstrated by the faculty participants. The themes included: (a) servant professors demonstrated integrity of belief and practice; (b) servant professors demonstrated a commitment to student centered learning; (c) servant professors demonstrated a commitment to the development of learning communities; (d) servant professors demonstrated a commitment to personal growth; (e) servant professors demonstrated a commitment to the greater common good; (f) servant professors courageously pursued innovation; (g) student professors displayed a passionate dedication to their students; and (h) servant professors established