Handbook of Higher Education, Volume 4: Prestige, Equity & Ethics

Hamza Boujida holds a PhD in Social Sciences from the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, Fez, Morocco. He also holds a Master's degree in Business Management and a Bachelor's degree in Economics and Management. He is a Professor at HECF Business School, Morocco. His doctoral research focuses on the valorization of cultural heritage in the emergence of entrepreneurial cities, with particular attention to the city of Fez. His broader interests bridge management sciences, territorial development, and higher education, and he has co-authored research on generative artificial intelligence and academic writing in Moroccan higher education.

A. U. Okoronka is identified in the supplied handbook metadata as affiliated with Modibbo Adama University, Nigeria. A separate contributor biography was not stated in the supplied volume manuscript.

John Sakiyo is identified in the supplied handbook metadata as affiliated with Modibbo Adama University, Nigeria. A separate contributor biography was not stated in the supplied volume manuscript.

Dr. Jacob Filgona is a lecturer and researcher in Curriculum and Instruction at the Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria. He holds a B.Ed. in Geography Education, an M.Ed., and a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction. His research interests include instructional strategies, student motivation, pedagogical content knowledge, teacher education, curriculum implementation, and educational technology. He has published widely on active learning approaches, including brainstorming, mastery learning, problem-solving, and scaffolding, with a focus on improving teaching effectiveness and student learning outcomes.

Kusum Lata is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at DGC Gurugram, bringing over a decade of postgraduate teaching experience to her academic roles. A highly regarded scholar, she has frequently been invited to serve as a subject expert across various academic platforms. Her prolific research profile includes the publication of 15 research papers and 35 edited book chapters. Dr. Lata's recognized research expertise spans the intersections of social media and politics, higher education, and contemporary societal issues. She remains deeply dedicated to advancing academic discourse and fostering critical inquiry within political science and contemporary sociological frameworks.

Memory Deredzai is a doctoral candidate in Educational Psychology in the Department of Educational Foundations, Faculty of Education at the University of Zimbabwe. She holds an MSc in Counselling Psychology from Great Zimbabwe University, a BSc Special Honours Degree in Psychology, a BSc in Monitoring and Evaluation from Lupane State University, a Bachelor of Education in Psychology, and a Diploma in Education. She is a Psychology Lecturer at Madziwa Teachers’ College and has over ten years of teaching experience. Her research interests include quality assurance, counselling, resilience, gender, emotional intelligence, and the wellbeing of marginalized populations.

Pedzisai Goronga is a Senior Lecturer and Chairperson of the Department of Educational Foundations in the Faculty of Education at the University of Zimbabwe. He holds a PhD and Master of Education in Educational Psychology from the University of Pretoria. His research interests include quality assurance in education, resilience, gender and education, emotional intelligence, guidance and counselling, and the internationalisation of higher education. With extensive experience in primary school teaching and over a decade in academia, he has contributed significantly to teaching, research, postgraduate supervision, curriculum development, academic leadership, and scholarly publications on educational development and transformation.

Dervin Cochrane is an interdisciplinary scholar, educational administrator, and legal professional specializing in educational planning, statutory compliance, and institutional governance in the Global South. He holds a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) from the University of Technology, Jamaica, a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) in Special Education, and a Master of Education (M.Ed.) in Education Administration. Currently an Ed.D. candidate in Educational Planning and Social Development at the University of the West Indies, Mona, his research focuses on the forensic auditing of systemic corruption, policy implementation, and structural reform within public education frameworks. Professionally, he serves as an Alternative Pathways to Secondary Education (APSE) Coach for Math and Science, leading instructional design and systemic interventions to optimize student equity. His scholarly contributions bridge legal frameworks with pedagogical accountability to cultivate transparency and institutional integrity across international education systems.

Muhammad Idreesul Islam is a Senior Assistant Professor in the Business School at SSM College of Engineering, Jammu and Kashmir, India. He holds an MBA in Human Resource Management and Marketing from the Central University of Kashmir. His teaching and research interests include human resource management, marketing, entrepreneurship, organisational behaviour, sustainability, digital transformation, higher education, and emerging technologies. He has contributed to several research projects, academic publications, conference presentations, and curriculum development initiatives. His work focuses on addressing contemporary management challenges through interdisciplinary research and evidence-based approaches that support academic and professional practice.

Rahma Barbara is a Professor of Higher Education (PES) in Language Sciences at the Department of French Language and Literature, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences Dhar El Mahraz (FLDM), Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University (USMBA), Fez, Morocco. She is the Director of the SLLACH Research Laboratory (Sciences du Langage, Littératures, Arts, Communication et Histoire) and co-founder of the journal Langue, Culture et Société (LACUS). She formerly served as Vice-President of the international Poclande Network (2021–2024). Her research areas include corpus linguistics, Arabic and French linguistics, paremiology, dialectology, and the languages of Morocco, within contrastive, descriptive, and sociolinguistic approaches.

Hafssa Bourfed is a PhD candidate at the SLLACH Research Laboratory, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences Dhar El Mahraz (FLDM), Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University (USMBA), Fez, Morocco, under the supervision of Prof. Rahma Barbara. Her doctoral research focuses on the multilingual digital communication strategies of Moroccan telecom operators, with particular attention to code-switching, multimodal semiotics, and advertising discourse. Her broader research interests include sociolinguistics, digital communication, higher education branding, and the intersection of artificial intelligence and academic writing. She has authored and co-authored work on generative AI in Moroccan higher education and on multilingual advertising in the North African context. ORCID: 0009-0003-8776-9655.

Sylvester Akujuru is a Graduate Assistant in the Department of Technical Education. He holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) Degree in Electrical Engineering from Rivers State University, Port Harcourt. His area of specialization is Technical Education (Electrical/Electronic Technology), with research interests spanning electrical engineering, renewable energy systems, and sustainable energy technologies. His current research focuses on the design and optimization of renewable energy systems, particularly hybrid energy solutions for sustainable power generation. He’s committed to advancing technical education through innovative research, practical engineering solutions, and the integration of emerging technologies to address contemporary challenges in energy and engineering education.

Offia Tugwell Owo is a registered electrical engineer, lecturer and researcher in the Department of Technical Education, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. He obtained his Ph.D. in Electrical/Electronic Technology Education with Distinction from the prestigious Rivers State University, Port Harcourt. With over 40 publications as journal articles, book chapters and conference proceedings, Dr. Owo contributed in no small measures to the development of education and technological advancement. He’s a certified educator, STEM education expert, and technology education researcher whose works cover digital education, educational assessment, teaching strategies, employability skills development, and higher education policies and administration.

Shweta Kaur Khalsa, (Shweta Tewari) is an Associate Professor at the School of Commerce and management studies, DSU. She demonstrates 4 years of strong academic experience in subjects like entrepreneurship, marketing, human resources, and content marketing. She has completed her PhD from S.P Jain School of Global Management, Mumbai. She also has more than 9+ years of experience as an entrepreneur, which helps her integrate hands-on experience in her sessions at the School of Commerce and Management Studies. She has published academic papers in entrepreneurship , marketing, culture and general management case studies in multiple SCOPUS, ABDC,WOS and UGC Indexed journals. She has also presented papers at International and National Conferences on various management-related topics.She thrives to inspire and shape young minds with holistic learning experiences at the school.

Subbarao, A. Nagaraj , is Professor and Dean at Dayananda Sagar University, Bengaluru, and a Fellow of the EuroMed Academy. A former Master Mariner with over two decades of global maritime leadership experience, he transitioned into academia to become a leader in executive education, strategy, and organizational development. He has built and scaled one of India’s largest on-campus Executive MBA programs, led AI-driven curriculum transformation initiatives, and founded the Centre of Excellence for Leadership and Indian Knowledge Systems (LIKES). His research interests include leadership, higher education, AI, sustainability, and organizational behaviour.

Restu Januarty Hamid, S.Pd.I., M.Pd. is a lecturer at the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Bosowa Makassar, Indonesia. She earned her Doctoral degree (S3) in English Language Education from Universitas Negeri Makassar, following her Master's and Bachelor's degrees in the same field. Her academic expertise focuses on English Language Teaching, particularly in the areas of digital pedagogy, hybrid learning, vocabulary development, and technology-enhanced language instruction. She has actively contributed to numerous national and international peer-reviewed journals, with research interests spanning innovative learning models, artificial intelligence in education, and EFL instructional practices. In addition to research activities, she is actively involved in community service programs, including student field supervision, educational training for teachers, and community empowerment initiatives in literacy and digital education. She also serves in various academic leadership roles, such as Head of English Study Program and Head of Language Laboratory. Through her scholarly work, teaching, and community engagement, she consistently fulfills the responsibilities of a professional lecturer by integrating research, education, and societal contribution. Her academic commitment reflects her belief in continuous learning, innovation, and meaningful impact on education and society.

Thivhavhudzi Muriel Badugela, since joining the University of Venda, he has lectured in Sociology of Education and Curriculum Studies. Muriel attended National and international conferences, presenting papers. Muriel published book chapters and papers in peer-reviewed journals. Before joining the university, I taught at secondary schools for 28 years and worked as a Principal at Tshiluwi Primary School. Since 2018, Muriel has been a Lecturer, WIL Departmental co-ordinator and researcher at the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education. Qualifications: STD-Makhado, B.A-Unisa, Bed Hons-Northwest, Med- Curriculum Studies Unisa, ACE- English, Technology Education -Unisa, Travel &Tourism -SACTE; PhD _Univen.

Bimlesh Kumar teaches Communication, Language and Literature at the Fiji National University for the past three years after teaching Physical Education and English in Secondary schools for twenty-seven years. He holds a Degree in Education majoring in English Literature and Language, a Post Graduate Diploma and Masters in English Literature and Language. He was bestowed a Gold Medal (Most Outstanding Student) in 2021 for his Masters qualifications. He is an avid long-distance runner who has represented Fiji in a number of regional and world competitions. A proud Rotarian, he loves reading, and advocates reading for pleasure especially amongst children.

Mohammed Feroz Ali is Associate Dean Research and Assistant Professor at Fiji National University, with over 30 years of experience in education, physical education, sports science, curriculum development, and information and communication technology (ICT). He holds a Ph.D. in Physical Education Curriculum from Mangalore University, India. Dr. Ali has published extensively in internationally indexed Q1, Q2, and Q3 journals, with research focusing on physical fitness, sports psychology, inclusive education, educational technology, and artificial intelligence in education. He authored Teaching Physical Education: Principles, Pedagogies and Practice (2025) and reviews for leading international academic journals.