December, 2005

Academic Leader - December 2005 - Full Issue
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Can Faculty Members Do It All at a Distance?
The interview process was going well. The search committee had identified the top candidate for the tenure-track faculty position. Now it was up to the vice president for academic affairs and the faculty senate chair to conduct the final stage of the interview. The candidate had impressive credentials and relevant experience, and the interviewers were ready to offer the candidate the position.

Engaging Departments in Community-Based Learning
Portland State University’s motto reads, “Let Knowledge Serve the City.” Departments across the university take this motto to heart, developing ways to infuse the curriculum with “community-based learning,” with the encouragement and support of Kevin Kecskes, director of Community-University Partnerships for Learning at PSU.

An Analysis of CSU Faculty and Chairs’ Perceptions of Faculty Performance
By Bob Cipriano, Ed.D., and Richard L. Riccardi
During the 2005 spring semester, all full-time faculty (N = 917) and department chairs (N = 118) from the four state universities comprising the Connecticut State University System were surveyed to determine what factors they consider important in making personnel decisions (e.g., tenure, promotion in rank, and reappointment) regarding full-time faculty within their departments. We hypothesized that there would be dissonance between these two cohorts in at least five of the 21 factors gathered from the literature.

Chairs Can Help Minimize Institution’s Legal Liability by Understanding Personnel Law, Policies
The actions or inaction of department chairs can have a profound effect on an institution’s exposure to legal liability, but few chairs are as well versed in personnel law as they should be. Sure, we’ve all heard about the major legislation—the Equal Opportunity Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act—but much of that legislation is poorly written, ambiguous, and “just about as boring to read as you can possibly imagine,” says James A. Fagin, dean of graduate studies and research at East Stroudsburg University.

Faculty Access and Responsiveness: New Questions?
By Aimee J. Luebben, Ed.D.
Can you see a student now?” Under usual circumstances, I would reply, “Of course,” and drop whatever I was doing regardless of whether I was tweaking final details of teaching materials, working on a scholarly product with a deadline, or completing a university-level committee assignment. Faculty access and responsiveness are valued by many universities, so seeing students (even those who drop in without appointments or at times other than scheduled office hours) is a key component of most faculty job descriptions.

Quick Quotes
I think my basic concerns would probably be meeting externally mandated standards. As a state university, our state legislature has imposed certain performance indicators upon us. And sometimes we just don’t have very much control over those.