Exploration leadership that advancing creative collaboration for teachers: A thematic analysis of a case study in a college of fine arts in China

Amidst China's robust push for aesthetic education reform, the emphasis on interdisciplinary and cross-specialty collaboration necessitates alterations to traditional collaboration frameworks, presenting fresh challenges for leadership. While most of today's schools have documented the closely knitted relationship between leadership and teacher collaboration in educational settings, very few attempts have been made to explore what competencies college leaders employ to infuse creative collaboration into the organizational culture and how this creative collaboration affects teachers’ work, especially under the aesthetic education reform in China. This research used qualitative case study and thematic analysis to explore leaders' competencies to promote creative collaboration in the organizational culture. This case study involved 10 participants from one College of Fine Arts in Henan, China, selected through purposeful sampling. Data were collected through 16 semi-structured interviews and the review of relevant documents. Findings reveal that the college dean employs an integrated leadership approach to foster positive creative collaboration among teachers. Findings were organized into the following themes: (i) Clear and decisive, collaboration-oriented organizational decision-making and guidance mechanisms; (ii) People-centric mindset: Fostering open and honest communication, creating a trusting environment; (iii) Maintenance and practice of integrity and responsibility; and finally (iv) Creating resources supporting and common goals to ignite teachers' passion for collaborative engagement. Valuable guidance in the leadership model for fostering positive teacher-creative collaboration for leaders in Chinese aesthetic education reform is provided based on these findings. Key Words:Leadership, Creative Collaboration, Aesthetic Education Reform, China