In order for faculty and staff to fully engage in shared governance, they must first understand their roles, responsibilities, and impact on the process. They also need to possess certain skills and knowledge to collaborate effectively across the institution. As a department chair, you are uniquely positioned to provide the necessary information, training, and support that faculty and staff may need to fully engage in the process. Join us online for a one-hour discussion to get tips and strategies for how to effectively train faculty and staff to prepare them for their participation in shared governance. Although the conversation will be responsive to the questions asked by the attendees, we anticipate discussing some of the following themes: Come prepared to engage in dialogue, ask questions, and share insights that can help you and other department chairs to confidently navigate shared governance.
Shared governance allows faculty and staff to contribute their opinions, insights, and best ideas for the benefit of the campus community. Shared governance also demands that faculty and staff collaborate in a way that is respectful to others, appreciates diversity of thought, and builds consensus. This requires you, as department chair, to create an environment that encourages a safe space for all participants. Join us online for a one-hour discussion to better understand how you can create an environment that encourages faculty and staff to contribute meaningfully to the shared governance process. Although the conversation will be responsive to the questions asked by the attendees, we anticipate discussing some of the following key questions: Come prepared to engage in dialogue, ask questions, and share insights that can help you and other department chairs to confidently navigate shared governance.
Leading from the middle of an institution is a tough role. Managing both up and down while completing student-centered work requires self-reflection, empathy, and intention. Yet it can be accomplished in a transformative way that both honors the individual identities of your team and advances the goals and mission of your institution. Join us for a discussion with Dr. Jenn Duffield as she reflects on how she navigated her role as Assistant Dean of Students & Title IX Coordinator leading a team of eight. Jenn will share how her role evolved over time, as well as the challenges and successes she experienced leading a team. She’ll also highlight the personal work she accomplished that informed her approach to inclusive supervision. We invite you to participate in conversation and share how you are working to develop your own sense of self as a leader and supervisor. We’ll discuss such aspects of leadership as: You’ll walk away from this discussion with an opportunity to reflect upon how you can lead more inclusively, as well as with resources to help you to do so.
As you navigate more complex leadership roles, you will also navigate more contentious issues and conflicts. This makes the relationships you form with your colleagues not only “nice to have,” but essential: there is very little that cannot be accomplished when relationships are strong and built on a foundation of trust and mutual respect. During this discussion, you’ll learn how a President and a CFO built a relationship that propelled the success of their teams, the institution, and helped them both to thrive individually. Carmen Twillie Ambar, President of Oberlin College, and Audra Hoffman Kahr, Executive Vice President of Finance & Administration at Lafayette College, will share how they met, how their relationship evolved, and a few lessons they’ve learned along the way as women leaders in higher education.
The increasingly competitive landscape within higher ed requires department chairs to be dynamic, not passive, in how they respond to challenges and opportunities. This requires you to make important decisions that may impact your department for years to come. As a new department chair, this can feel scary since you’re still learning how to do the job, and you’re likely missing important information to make an informed decision in many scenarios. Join us online for a one-hour discussion in which you’ll get tips for how to assess your department’s history, trends, and strategic position within the college/university. More importantly, we’ll discuss why this information is essential as a new chair. If you’re interested in learning how to fill your knowledge gaps and feel more confident about your decision-making, this discussion is for you. Topics for discussion will likely include the following:
As you look to move into the workplace, it is more important than ever to expand your leadership abilities in order to be successful. Although you will have learned key content and practiced skills like creativity and collaboration in your classes, employers often report that graduates do not possess the level of preparedness in leadership skills needed to be successful in their careers. This course is designed to reinforce and help you to demonstrate your ability to work in increasingly global and collaborative work environments. This course covers the following topics: This course consists of five modules encompassing leadership skills that will benefit you in the workplace. Each module includes several short videos and accompanying workbook prompts and activities, with each designed to take you about 50-75 minutes per module. We recommend pacing them out to one module per week, but you can complete the activities at your own pace!
Fundraising for your academic unit does not happen in a vacuum. You and your dean need to work in concert with campus partners to build a pipeline of prospective donors, identify a case for support, and connect donors’ values and passions to institutional priorities. In this session, we’ll discuss challenges with and ways to improve your dean’s collaborations with central advancement, alumni relations, faculty, and other campus stakeholders.
Time is a limited factor for all. As a department chair, you likely need to delegate tasks or responsibilities to others to ensure that your most important work gets done. However, as workloads have increased over time, you’re also careful not to overwhelm faculty and staff with unnecessary work. You know there’s a way to delegate work so that it promotes the talent development of your team, but it’s not always clear when or how to do it. Join us online for a one-hour discussion where we will explore how to delegate work in a way that prepares faculty and staff for the next step of their careers. Although the conversation will be responsive to the questions asked by the attendees, we anticipate focusing the conversation on how you can delegate in a way that doesn’t feel like it adds to faculty and staff workloads, but that instead helps them to develop their talents for the benefit of the campus community. Come prepared to engage in dialogue, ask questions, and share insights with other department chairs from across the country.
In part three of this discussion series, The Impact of Enhancing Customer Service in Higher Education, learn strategies and techniques that can be used to create a more caring culture on your campus and increase the quality of the student and employee experience.
To successfully cultivate donors, deans need to understand donor psychology and philanthropic propensity. In this session, we’ll discuss how you approach portfolio management and managing prospect information with your dean. You’ll have the opportunity to share best practices and consider new ways to structure your work to achieve the fundraising goals of your academic unit.
