September 8, 2008, 1:39 pm
By Brock Read
When I taught high school, I was told in no uncertain terms to avoid the faculty lounge. “Smokers, no-accounts, and grousers all,” the principal told me. The rebel in me defied the advice for a few weeks but soon I found that the principal was more knowledgeable than paranoid. It was, indeed, a den of social poison, a veritable vortex of negativity.
At my first tenure-track institution, I was leery about hanging out in the faculty lunch room. However, it turned out to be a different experience entirely. Administrators and faculty members alike frequented the room, which was packed at the noon hour. Inexpensive soups and sandwiches were available, as was a bottomless coffee cup.
The conversations were fascinating. That first year I learned much about the institution’s history and characters from the long-timers, I learned much about the life of the town from more recent hires, and I…
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September 4, 2008, 1:37 pm
By Brock Read
When I started my first tenure-track position, I found quickly that while I enjoyed earning a paycheck, I missed my doctoral program. I missed the intellectual camaraderie, the mentorship by my professors, and even the small college town where I had lived. I loved my job and my new colleagues, but it was weird being a “genuine adult” after so many years of school.
What do you miss about your days as a graduate student?
August 30, 2008, 12:43 pm
By Brock Read
When candidates consider applying for a position, they are naturally interested in the salary they might be offered. Job ads are replete with language offering “competitive” salaries, or salaries “commensurate with experience and qualifications.” But this language means virtually nothing, as there are no real benchmarks for competitiveness or commensurability in faculty or administrative salaries.
The AAUP’s average salary figures are available on The Chronicle’s website. But these averages are very rough, as they can be grossly distorted by the presence of professional schools, small cadres of faculty at a specific rank, and a variety of other factors. They thus only provide a very rough guess about the “competitiveness” of salaries at a particular institution.
I admit I am puzzled that hiring institutions do not have more complete disclosure of anticipated salary ranges for their …
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August 29, 2008, 2:20 pm
By Brock Read
I keep a list of topics to discuss with prospective faculty candidates in the various searches at my college. I have four informational points that I focus on in every search — our institution, our students, our future plans, and our community.
I also customize a few further points that are specific to a particular search. I keep these topics written out to make sure that I do not fail to include them for any particular candidate. I want each candidate to have the same amount of information as the other candidates; I never share any information with one candidate that I would not share with all candidates. Occasionally, if one candidate asks me a question that generates additional information, I’ll go back and contact the other candidates with that information to ensure a level playing field.
I do this because I’ve run into other administrators who offered information to some…
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August 26, 2008, 7:58 am
By Brock Read
“Bob” was working in the administration of a high-profile president. The president was very generous in his mentorship of Bob, and one day, out of the blue, Bob himself was invited to interview with a presidential headhunter.
Over a very expensive lunch, the headhunter told Bob that his president was one of the hottest properties in all of higher ed and that several institutions were looking for someone who was a chip off the old block.
“Everyone tells us that you share your president’s skills and sense of vision,” the headhunter said. “We’d really like to explore establishing a relationship with you as a candidate.”
Bob decided not to close any doors, so he agreed to provide a complete CV to the headhunter’s group.
A month later, Bob’s president resigned amid allegations of financial improprieties. Bob never heard from the headhunter again.
Bob’s story makes me think about…
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August 20, 2008, 2:53 pm
By Brock Read
Most general job-hunting books recommend including a section of “personal information” on a résumé. And some Ph.D.‘s, following that advice, include on their CV’s information about their hobbies, spouse, children, and so forth.
I find mention of a candidate’s “hobbies” to be mildly interesting — good conversation material — but never once has that information influenced me to interview a candidate.
Same with details about a candidate’s familiy. With very few exceptions, it’s illegal to include family status in a search-committee deliberations. I have, however, occasionally noted when a spouse is an academic whose specialty is one for which my institution has a search under way. On more than one occasion, I’ve asked for the spouse to send in a CV for the other faculty search.
Putting a “personal information” section on your CV doesn’t bother me one iota, but I am wondering if any…
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August 18, 2008, 11:05 am
By Brock Read
This week I sent my college’s new faculty members a list of my recommendations for local dry cleaners, electricians, babysitters, and so forth. I also asked our each of our departments to prepare wallet-sized cards with the names and phone numbers on it of everyone in that department.
When I came to this university, I received such lists from a couple of folks and found them quite helpful, especially when I had a plumbing emergency during the first week of classes. Some weeks later, I had a car wreck and was ever so glad for that wallet list of numbers; one of my new colleagues came and rescued me from the side of the road as a wrecker towed away my crushed vehicle. It never fails that the start of school will coincide with some kind of aggravating complication in one’s personal life.
What information like that would have helped you as a newcomer to the campus and the surrounding…
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August 13, 2008, 6:39 am
By Brock Read
Military historian Mark Grimsley recently pondered the love affair that the military has with acronyms; his blog posts a list of those that begin with “Q,” which are exhausting enough.
Higher education shares that same affinity, with our A.B.D.‘s, HBCU’s, SLAC’s, SACS, and so forth. We spout them off like they are common knowledge, but I remember being lost as a graduate student whenever I heard most of them. Learning the jargon is part of the process of being admitted to the profession, I suppose.
Further, higher education and the military seem to share a fair number of other things. We may not have generals, colonels, and corporals, but we sure do have presidents, vice presidents, and visiting instructors. We have “proper channels” and official forms aplenty. In our hiring, there is definitely a streak of deference to the “junior officers” who served the “general staff.”
Are…
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August 8, 2008, 11:57 am
By Brock Read
As a follow-up to my previous post about naked ambition, I’d like to explore the other end of the leadership pool.
A friend of mine went into politics. He was smart, humble, and filled with integrity. After a single term in office, he was fed up and refused to run for re-election. I understood his frustration, but I also know that if all of the good ones avoid pursuing political office, then where does that leave us?
I feel the same way about academic administration sometimes. I hear talented and capable faculty leaders say, “That’s not my cup of tea” or “I’m not going to the dark side!” But if the talented and capable folks all say that, then what kinds of prospective leaders will we have?
How can we encourage more of the “good ones” to take on leadership roles?
August 6, 2008, 1:56 pm
By Brock Read
I worked as a presidential aide at a large research institution for a while, and our office had no shortage of ambitious young administrators coming through on business. The administrative assistants laughed openly about one up-and-comer who wore seersucker suits and bow ties in ridiculous color combinations. He all but introduced himself as “Bob, university president-to-be.” He actually told one assistant, “I plan to be a college president by the time I’m 35. Why lie about it? Why be secretive?”
Here’s why: You turn people off with that kind of brazen talk.
I’m not just talking about presidential ambitions here. I’m amazed at how often faculty candidates openly proclaim in their interviews that they want my job as dean in the future. The same thing happened when I was a department chair. That kind of thing rubs faculty members the wrong way, too. I’ve heard many a professor say, “It’…
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