This qualitative single-case study examines university social responsibility (USR) within private higher education in the United States, grounded in stakeholder theory (Freeman, 1984) and Carroll's (1979) corporate social responsibility framework. Framed against recent governance failures and equity controversies in United States higher education, the study investigates how private institutions sustain social responsibility and how that responsibility affects marginalized students' persistence decisions. It also examines how administrators and policymakers perceive the relationship between social responsibility, stakeholder satisfaction, and financial performance. Data were collected through twenty semi-structured interviews with administrators, an alumni parent, and current and former students at a private institution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, supplemented by archival and documentary analysis. Thematic analysis produced eight recurring themes — including barriers to equity, institutional commitment to equity, sense of belonging, and campus climate — that map onto the five pillars of the Rodríguez Weighted Index (RWI): governance and ethical culture, student equity and wellbeing, academic quality and integrity, community and public interest impact, and environmental and operational sustainability. Findings reveal persistent gaps between institutions' stated commitments and stakeholders' lived experiences, alongside identifiable strengths that can anchor institutional improvement. The study introduces the Rodríguez USR Model (R-USR) and the RWI as diagnostic and accountability tools for evaluating institutional ethical maturity, and offers pillar-specific recommendations for advancing governance transparency, equity, and stakeholder trust across WSCUC-accredited private institutions.
This expanded second edition manuscript integrates updated research, contemporary crises in higher education, and the full articulation of University Social Responsibility (USR) as a comprehensive ethical framework for modern institutions. It includes the Rodríguez Weighted Index (RWI), the Rodríguez USR Model (R-USR), and a complete glossary.
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- DBA Ava Hunter Rodríguez (Autor), 2026, University Social Responsibility. The Rodriguez Framework for Ethical Higher Education, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1773490
