Course Category: Free for All-Inclusive Members

Recognizing and Celebrating Faculty and Staff:  A Panel Conversation

Faculty and staff morale is at an all-time low across most institutions in higher education, and this puts your department or unit at risk of increasing levels of burnout, decreased productivity and, ultimately, higher turnover. One way you can start to make a difference is by fostering a work environment where praise, appreciation, and gratitude are front and center. Join a panel of academic leaders and discover tips, strategies, and new methods for how you can provide praise and recognition that is meaningful, authentic, and consistent. We recognize that the needs of faculty and staff vary across disciplines and career levels, and we know that your team is likely working in a hybrid environment, so we’ll make sure you walk away with a variety of ways for you to better celebrate the accomplishments, effort, and energy of your faculty and staff.

The 3 Critical Elements to Include in Department Chair Training

Chairs occupy an essential position on our campuses, sitting at the intersection point that connects our faculty to institutional strategy, context, and culture. They also make some of the most impactful decisions that shape the university, overseeing decisions related to hiring, promotion, and curriculum. Yet for most institutions, the support and training available to chairs is minimal.   Most of the training provided to chairs is limited to topics like how to work with HR, budgeting, and promotion & tenure. But what truly separates effective chairs from ineffective chairs are their leadership skills, such as:   Academic Impressions has been trusted to effectively train department chairs across the U.S. and Canada for over ten years. In this free webcast, we’ll discuss the keys to our success, what works and what doesn’t, and create a space for others to share their best practices.   If you need to start or enhance chair development at your own institution, we invite you to join us for this program.  

Actualize Your Purpose, Part 2: Everyday Strategies for Staying Connected to Your Well-Being

Working in higher education now requires navigating remote, hybrid environments and supporting overextended students and colleagues while navigating institutional complexity and resource precarity. To show up for this kind of work, you must intentionally center your well-being to thrive in this ever-changing environment.  In Part 1 of this workshop series, you assessed your well-being, identified your values, and crafted your own definition of success. In Part 2, you will spend time exploring strategies to stay connected to your larger purpose in your everyday work. Jennifer will show you time-based and mindset strategies such as: creating a model calendar, time tracking, thinking medium- and long-range, and more.

Design Thinking Certification: A 5-Day Program to Help You Solve Complex Problems Creatively

For 5 days, you will get daily emails Monday through Friday, with bite-sized videos that you can complete in 30 minutes or less each day. If you complete all modules within two weeks, you will have the chance to request a certificate of completion. New cohorts start every Monday.   Don’t miss the opportunity to integrate professional development into your daily routine and establish a solid understanding of design thinking principles in your work.   Recommended Schedule:   Day 1: 20 minutes  Day 2: 20 minutes  Day 3: 20 minutes  Day 4: 20 minutes  Day 5: 30 minutes 

Developing a Foundation for Sustained Philanthropic Support: A Certificate Program for Deans and Academic Leaders

Alumni participation has steadily declined across institutions of higher education in the United States for several decades. And increasingly, donors are taking their philanthropic inclinations to organizations where they can give to specific purposes with targeted outcomes. The most successful deans and academic leaders are attuned to this reality and work in concert with their advancement colleagues to help alumni and donors see how the institution’s capabilities align with alumni and donor passions to make a significant, sustainable difference in society together. Understanding how to facilitate philanthropic engagement from alumni and donors by providing them with portals of purpose to give through your institution, rather than to it, can restore and sustain your student experience and alumni affinity for years to come.   Join us for a five-week certificate program designed to teach you how leadership, collaboration, and philanthropic vital signs can combine into a larger strategy to strengthen donor engagement with your unit. Specifically, you’ll learn:    As a culminating activity, you will create an action plan for the year ahead focused on improving collaboration and the health of your philanthropic vital signs, and you’ll discuss with your peers how to overcome any barriers you may face to implement it. 

Taking a Formative Assessment Approach to Annual Faculty Evaluations

Whether your faculty are standout rock stars, or they are struggling to perform as expected, the annual evaluation is a valuable opportunity to foster engagement with them. It’s a chance to reflect on how the year has gone, express gratitude for their contributions to the campus community, and provide specific and actionable feedback to help them progress towards the next career milestones. But how do you structure your time together so that it’s positive, productive, and supportive for all faculty?  Join us online to learn how you can plan for and guide the faculty evaluation session, so that it’s impactful for all involved. You’ll also learn about a 5-step process that focuses on formative assessment and allows you to co-create a vision for success alongside your faculty. Come prepared to engage in dialogue, ask questions, and share your insights with other department chairs from across the country. 

Actualize Your Purpose, Part 1: Connecting Your Well-Being to Your Work

During this 3-hour workshop, you will assess your well-being through the research-based Resilience @ Work framework. Then, you will explore how you can redefine success in ways that support your values and the impact you want to have in the world. You will conclude the workshop by drafting an initial plan for how you can do this in your everyday work.  

The Art of Faculty Accountability

For many reasons, it can feel challenging to hold faculty accountable for their performance—especially when they’re struggling. The truth is, not holding faculty to expected standards often seeds long-term problems, creates resentment amongst faculty colleagues, and is a disservice to the institution’s students. But how do we do this work in a way that brings out the best in our faculty?  Join us online to discuss ways to inspire faculty to pursue higher levels of performance. You’ll hear from a panel of three academic leaders at various career levels—Department Chair, Dean, and Assistant Provost. Together, they’ll share their experience, tips, and strategies for how to hold faculty at all stages of their career accountable in ways that are supportive and mission-aligned ways. We invite you to come prepared to share your own insights, tips, or questions for the group, so that we can grow our collective wisdom, as well. 

Managing Faculty Workloads: A Discussion for Department Chairs

Faculty bring a range of academic and professional talents to their departments. Because of this, many faculty carry heavy workloads, which can lead to high levels of burnout. Chairs are in the unique position to manage faculty workloads, and consequently, the long-term growth and development of faculty, as well. However, many chairs do not have training or background in talent management.  Join us online for a one-hour discussion in which we’ll talk about how you can develop an intentional talent management strategy for your department. Although the conversation will be responsive to the questions asked by the attendees, the discussion will focus on sharing systematic and evidence-based talent management strategies that will help you to balance the workload for your faculty.  Come prepared to engage in dialogue, ask questions, and share insights with other department chairs from across the country.

Setting Boundaries with Empathy

Balancing the responsibilities of being a faculty member with responding to increasing student needs and life outside the university has only gotten more challenging post-pandemic. Faculty, for instance, are experiencing burnout at higher levels than ever before. But faculty who learn how to set boundaries with their work and maintain a healthy integration are far more likely to continue to enjoy that work and maintain their sense of professional well-being.    In this course, Jackie Leibsohn will walk you through how to identify what’s being added to your plate, how and when to say “No” empathetically to additional work, and what may be standing in your way as you set boundaries. This course will speak to faculty at all levels who want to better learn how to set boundaries kindly with colleagues. For those who are not faculty but who may want to learn more about setting and maintaining boundaries, this course will be useful as well.