January 10, 2003

The Dean of Happiness: Why Bad Times Are Good

By STANLEY FISH

For the first time in my four years as a dean there is nothing on my schedule today, and I take this as partial evidence that one of the commonplaces administrators routinely hurl at one another is flat wrong: "It's easy to be a dean when times are flush, but you really show what you're made of when the money dries up and you are put to the test of moving forward in the absence of resources."

The truth is the opposite: When there is no money, being a dean is easy and pretty much risk