Funding for higher education ebbs and flows based on government support and tuition revenue. When the dollars flow, we have the tendency to spread our wings. New capital infrastructure adds valuable square feet that are filled quickly, whether they are needed or not. These periods of space affluence are generally short but they favor a high degree of space and timetabling flexibility for faculty. In some cases, this flexibility lends value to teaching and learning but in many others, it is simply a case of hoarding, serving wants more than needs. So, what is space flexibility? Space flexibility is more than just adding square feet to a school’s footprint. Flexibility can include scheduling two spaces at once to be able to move fluidly between two types of lessons (such as lab and lecture). It can include a space that is designed for both classroom lecture and student project work. It can also involve flexibility in faculty schedules, such as not teaching before 10:30 am or not teaching on Friday afternoons. Any behavior that contributes to lower room or seat utilization rate can be attributed to space flexibility. Space flexibility can provide value but it comes at a cost that few […]
By Manya C. Whitaker, PhDAssociate Professor & Chair of Education, Crown Faculty Center Director, Colorado College When I started graduate school in 2006, I had no interest in becoming a professor or joining academe. I wanted to work at a think tank researching youth development to inform public policy. But in my third year of graduate school, I was a Teaching Assistant (TA) for a developmental psychology class and everything changed. I discovered the joy of teaching and eventually petitioned to teach sections of the course. When I entered the job market, I was certain to apply to small liberal arts colleges where teaching was paramount in the job description. Ten years later, I know I made the right decision. But I also confess that in year 6, teaching started to lose its appeal and I sought new challenges. I asked my chair if I could be the associate chair to ease the workload in the department. He happily agreed, and I had my second professional epiphany—I like administrative work! I’ve always been a person who made lists and found joy in crossing each item off. I have very detailed schedules that tell me what I should be doing almost […]
By Emma White JD, MAAssistant Professor and Department Chair, English, University of Hawai`i, Maui College Navigation and cartography may be overused clichés, but they helped me through tenure’s stormy seas. And the process of obtaining tenure is an especially stormy sea for women in particular. Data from the American Association of University Women shows that only 27% of tenured faculty among four-year institutions are women. Women faculty—especially women faculty of color—also face additional barriers in the form of systemic sexism, racism, and isolation based on the marginalized identities they hold. I cannot solve most of the challenges women face around promotion & tenure in one article, but I can share some of my own experiences in hopes of helping other women faculty along in the process. I applied for and was awarded tenure while pregnant with my first child. Over the five-year process to gain tenure, I followed a highly effective strategy that helped me improve my teaching, align with my goals, and manage my stress. I’ve since had the honor of mentoring other women through the tenure process, and as I look back on how I navigated my own, several guideposts emerge. Accept that you need a map and […]
Dr. Murphy has over 20 years of professional experience in the areas of training, operations, human resources, project management, marketing, and education. She has had a successful and rewarding career at Sacramento State for the past 19 years and enjoys the opportunity to blend professional and personal activities to give back to her community. Throughout her career she has applied her professional background, personal characteristics, and academic training to build and implement strategies that move organizations forward. She was the recipient of the 2018 American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) Sacramento Chapter’s prestigious Chester A. Newland Academic Excellence Award for her leadership in the education of public administrators, was also one of seven “Women of Influence” honored by Sacramento State for outstanding leadership on campus and in the community, and received the 2019 Edward M. McAleer Jr. Excellence and Innovation Award from the California State University Commission on the Extended University. Dean Murphy’s research has focused on the projected shortage of postsecondary completions and degree attainment in California. As a dean, her work is at the intersection of workforce impact, economic development, and higher education, and she currently serves on the CSU Commission on the Extended University. Dr. Jenni is […]
FREE WEBCAST Using Metrics to Support Employee Success and Retention—A Discussion for Advancement Leaders Live Webcast: Monday, June 13, 2022 | 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Eastern Consider ways to restructure your metrics to meet changing philanthropic goals and staffing needs. Over the last two years, the COVID-19 pandemic shifted the way many advancement professionals approached their work with donors. At the same time, the pandemic also impacted employee hiring and retention in advancement shops. Today, advancement leaders are searching for ways to stabilize their fundraising and staffing needs and are considering questions like: How do we need to adjust our metrics to meet our institution’s current needs and philanthropic goals in the wake of the pandemic? How can our approach with metrics also support employee success and retention? What steps do we need to take to make these changes and what do we hope the outcomes to be? If you are an advancement leader who is considering ways in which frontline fundraising and other metrics can not only help you achieve your philanthropy goals but also bolster individual and team success and support employee retention, we invite you to join us for this free webcast to examine these and other […]
A few years ago, National Louis University in Chicago, which has historically served adult working students, has launched the new Harrison Professional Pathways Program, which provides access to bachelor’s degrees for traditional-aged high school graduates from all socioeconomic and academic backgrounds, but aims in particular to increase college access and success for first-generation, often low-income students. Priced at only $10,000 per year, the program is remarkable both in its outcomes and in the intentionality of its design. The curriculum, student support, and the financial model were all designed deliberately to meet the needs of this student demographic. The program was launched in response to a low (14%) four-year college completion rate for Chicago Public high school freshmen. This caught our attention; here in Denver, CO, where Academic Impressions is based, the four-year college graduation rate for Denver Public Schools graduates is just 9%. These low percentages are red flags, and when colleges can innovate to answer this societal need, that is a clear win. It takes courage on the part of the institution’s leadership to create the space needed for that innovation and to dedicate institutional resources toward it, and it takes intentionality to do so in a way that […]
Amid calls for accountability, a new report from the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) offers recommendations for academic libraries on how to define their value to the institution and how to adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing environment. Among the recommendations: defining outcomes, putting assessment management systems in place, and defining and strengthening the library’s contribution to student success. In light of the report, we turned to Paul Gandel, professor of information studies at Syracuse University, and Gene Spencer, principal of Gene Spencer Consulting, for additional advice on how academic libraries can define and communicate their value. Being Seen as the Solution “People have to see you as a solution they need. No amount of awareness or promotion is going to make you relevant. Your vision for how the library can contribute to the institutional mission is what makes you relevant.” Paul Gandel, Syracuse U The ACRL report lists multiple ways in which libraries can measure and define their value, including: Library impact on students’ academic success, persistence, and retention Library impact on student job success Library impact on student learning Library impact on faculty research productivity Library impact on increasing grant revenue through assistance with faculty […]
Jamie Troester is the Senior Coordinator of Events and Tours at Oklahoma State University. With more than twenty years of non-profit event planning experience, Jamie has served in her current role for ten years and is responsible for OSU’s campus visit and event program. Jamie is highly involved in all aspects of meeting and event planning including high profile programs to large-scale visit days with over 3,000 guests. She enjoys collaborating with campus partners to host and provide tours to over 30,000 guests each year. Jamie has direct oversight of forty campus tour guides and two staff members. She is a member of the Collegiate Information Visitors Services Association (CIVSA) and is serving her second year on the Region 2 leadership team. Organization, communication, and a solid relationship with the office’s data team are her recipes for success. She is passionate about working with college students and showcasing OSU’s beautiful campus to prospective students and families. Jamie resides in Stillwater with her husband Lance, their sixteen-year-old daughter, Lilli and furry family members, Rascal and Bella. She is a homebody and a dedicated yogi who will always choose music over TV, a book over tablet and carry-out over oven mitts. […]
In this role, Lisa Henkel leads the university’s strategic and operational retention efforts. Henkel is responsible for providing leadership, definition, and organization to the advising and retention functions of the university. In collaboration with the academic community, she implements growth and retention strategies for UMUC to foster optimal continuous enrollment of students. She has a student-centered philosophy, is dedicated to the holistic development of students, and brings enthusiasm to her leadership role. Henkel considers it an honor to be able to give back to her alma mater; she took her first class with UMUC in 1993 while serving on active duty at RAF Bentwaters, United Kingdom. Henkel has more than 15 years of enrollment management experience, most recently serving as the director of UMUC’s Downrange and Europe Operations. She was responsible for directing UMUC’s enrollment operations across Europe and for meeting the educational needs of warriors serving their country downrange with the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM). Henkel also established the first-ever Afghanistan graduation ceremony, to honor the inspiring accomplishments of servicemembers who finished their degrees while on deployment. Henkel earned both her master’s degree in management and her MBA from UMUC. In 2009, Henkel received […]
In the role of dean of college of Professional Studies, Dr. Long is responsible for designing three to four new academic graduate and undergraduate programs each year in response to time-sensitive workplace development needs. She is accountable for growing the college by 1,000 students and $10 million in revenue in five years. She also provides leadership for CORE: The Competency-Based Assessment and Development Program, the School of TransformAging®, the Adult Degree Program, The Institute for Law, Justice & Society and a host of other academic offerings. Dr. Long serves on the university’s academic leadership team, setting the academic vision for the entire university, and builds, develops, and inspires a team of individuals to achieve college objectives. Dr. Long, as creator and founder of The School of TransformAging®, was selected by Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam to chair the Governor’s Task Force on Aging. As chair, she authored a strategic plan, drawing on the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, to better meet the needs of older Tennesseans and their families. Dr. Long was named “Woman of Influence” for Innovation by the Nashville Business Journal in its inaugural class of award recipients. Although the words innovative and entrepreneurial are not synonyms with those […]
