And the Triteness Award Goes To . . .

Plenty of people have been offering their opinions lately about how to manage the current crisis in higher education. One phrase that keeps popping up in all the talk absolutely grates me: “We need to work smarter not harder.” I heard that phrase repeatedly about 10 years ago in lots of federal agencies that were tightening their belts. That was about the same time as “paradigm shift” was the phrase du jour in higher ed.

My cynical opinion is that such phrases are really just voiced verbal pauses — the equivalent of long “ums” that fill the vacuum when someone really doesn’t know what to say. Sort of a more official way of saying “yada yada yada”: You fill in the blanks.

What phrases are driving you crazy in your institution’s jargon these days?