Navigating power dynamics in student-staff partnerships

The idea of co-creating curricula with students has gained momentum in recent years to challenge conventional power relationships within universities through amplification of student voice and advocacy for meaningful student participation in teaching, research, and service. This is a necessary response to facilitate higher education transformation through curriculum reform grounded in students’ lived experiences. This paper explores a student-led process to design a new leadership academy at a large research-intensive university in the Western Cape, South Africa, a context characterised by pronounced disparities in power. The paper brings the literature on student-staff partnerships and equity-oriented learning design into conversation. Based on feedback from the student facilitators involved in designing the creation of this student leadership academy framed by principles developed by the equityXdesign cooperative, we will reflect on how these student-led design spaces can both catalyse transformation and render students vulnerable. The study’s findings have implications for curriculum design and development in higher education, particularly in contexts characterised by significant power disparities.