SENIOR FACULTY INTERESTS,
IDEAS, AND OPPORTUNITIES
BRIAN SMENTKOWSKI, PH.D.
[email protected]
DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF FACULTY EXCELLENCE
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
ASSOCIATE EDITOR, TO IMPROVE THE ACADEMY
QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE
THIS WORK IS BASED UPON RESEARCH PRESENTED BY THE AUTHOR AT THE 2015 POD CONFERENCE
WHY SENIOR FACULTY?
• WE HAVE A GOOD DEAL OF WORK –PROGRAMMING AND SCHOLARSHIP– DEDICATED TO
JUNIOR FACULTY SUCCESS AND A SURGING INTEREST IN MID-CAREER FACULTY.
• SENIOR FACULTY OPERATE AMIDST A MYRIAD OF MYTHS AND PERSISTENT, NEGATIVE
STEREOTYPES BASED ON ASSUMPTIONS OF PRODUCTIVITY, ENGAGEMENT, AND REACTIONARY
ATTITUDES.
• MYTHS DEFINE SYSTEMS AND ARE OFTEN BOTH WRONG AND HARMFUL.
WHY VITALITY?
• VITALITY IS A LYNCH-PIN TO INDIVIDUAL AND INSTITUTIONAL SUCCESS.
• “WITHOUT SUSTAINED VITALITY, FACULTY AT ANY LEVEL FACE THE DANGERS OF BURNOUT,
WANING INTEREST, AND GROWING DISENGAGEMENT.”
• NOW, COUPLE THIS RISK FACTOR WITH THE MYTHS ABOUT SENIOR FACULTY ENGAGEMENT.
• WHAT DO WE SEE?
PERCEPTIONS AND REALITY
PERCEPTIONS
REALITY
WHAT CAN WE DO?
• “…THERE DOES SEEM TO BE A LACK OF IMAGINATION IN PROGRAMMING FOR SENIOR FACULTY…”
• “…I FEEL LIKE I LOST A SEAT AT THE TABLE…”
• SO, WHAT CAN WE DO?
• ASK, LISTEN, THINK, RESPOND
• ABOUT?
•
THEIR “MIGHTY A.C.R.E.” (AUTONOMY, COMMUNITY, RECOGNITION, EFFICACY), AND
•
THEIR IDEAS FOR ENHANCING ENGAGEMENT IN:
•
THE LIFE AND DIRECTION OF THE UNIVERSITY
•
TEACHING
•
SCHOLARSHIP
•
SERVICE
•
OTHER
FROM A LARGER PROJECT
THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS INCLUDE…
• WHAT ARE THE SELF PERCEPTIONS SENIOR FACULTY POSSES, AND
• WHAT ARE THE STRATEGIES AND PROCESSES THAT SENIOR FACULTY USE TO MAINTAIN AND
REGAIN CREATIVITY AND PASSION IN THEIR WORK?
SOME RESULTS:
PERCENTAGE OF FACULTY WHO “STRONGLY AGREE”
WHAT THE DATA TELL US
• THE RESULTS (FROM THE SURVEY AND OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS) IDENTIFY
AND EMPHASIZE FOUR FACTORS:
• SUSTAINED RELATIONSHIPS
• MOSTLY FACULTY-STUDENT, BUT ALSO CONSIDER FACULTY-FACULTY
• SELF EFFICACY
• CONFIDENCE AND BELIEVING IN ONE’S OWN ABILITY TO ACCOMPLISH GOALS.
• PREPARED FOR AND A DESIRE TO WORK ON BIG IDEAS AND PROJECTS
• MINDSET
• THINK CAROL DWECK, THE POWER OF A POSITIVE MINDSET, AND WHAT IT TAKES
TO HAVE/CULTIVATE ONE
• SCHOLARLY LIFE
• PRODUCTIVE, DIVERSE, WILLFUL
STRATEGIES BASED ON THE RESULTS AND OPENENDED RESPONSES
STRATEGY 1: SEPARATION
I HATE TO SAY IT…BUT I GET A LOT OUT OF PLEASING PEOPLE AND LIVING
UP TO EXPECTATIONS. BUT NOW I THINK THE BEST STRATEGY THAT’S MOST
LIKELY TO KEEP ME ENGAGED IS TO BACK AWAY: TO STOP TRYING TO DOT
THIS YEAR’S I’S AND CROSS THAT INITIATIVE’S T’S, AND INSTEAD DEVOTE
MYSELF TO TEACHING AND SCHOLARSHIP. IF I KEEP ON LIKE I’M GOING—
TAKING CARE OF EVERYONE ELSE, JUMPING TO EVERY NEW BAR,
EMBRACING EVERY TRENDY IDEA, BREAKING MY HEART EVERY TIME I, OR A
FRIEND, OR XXX ITSELF, IS LET DOWN…IT’S GOING TO KILL ME.
STRATEGY 2: BALANCE
I OPERATED FOR 24 YEARS OF MY LIFE IN AN EXCEPTIONALLY COMPETITIVE
INDUSTRY BEFORE COMING TO ACADEMIA. WE OPERATED ON A BASIC
PRINCIPLE: YOU ARE EITHER MOVING FORWARD OR YOU ARE MOVING
BACKWARD. REMAINING IN THE STATUS QUO IS NOT AN OPTION… AT THE
END OF EVERY DAY I ASK TWO SIMPLE QUESTIONS:
WHAT DID I DO TODAY THAT WAS REALLY GOOD?
WHAT DID I DO TODAY THAT I COULD IMPROVE UPON?
STRATEGY 3: MINDSET
STICK TO THE POSITIVE, AVOID THE NEGATIVE; FOCUS ON THE GOOD
STUFF—THOUGH THERE’S CRAP, THERE’S PLENTY OF GOOD STUFF …
EMPHASIZING THE POSITIVE AND BEING A POSITIVE INFLUENCE
(MINDSET IS GOAL ORIENTED; NOT AS “SOFT” AS IT SOUNDS).
STRATEGY 4: INITIATIVE
I JUST ENJOY WHAT I DO, AND I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TEACH NEW CLASSES
THAT I’M INTERESTED IN, GET INVOLVED IN NEW PROJECTS THAT INTEREST
ME, AND RESEARCH AREAS THAT I FIND INTERESTING.
STRATEGY 6: ACTIVE SCHOLAR
[ENGAGING IN] THE SCHOLARLY LIFE…TEACHING, READING RESEARCH IN
MY AREA, INTERACTING WITH STUDENTS, FACULTY, & STAFF, ACADEMIC
CLIMATE (A PLACE WHERE EVERYONE IS COMMITTED TO LIFELONG
LEARNING), FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE, FEELING LIKE I’M MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN
MY STUDENTS’ LIVES AND CAREERS…
CHOICE!
STRATEGY 5: RELATIONSHIPS
IT ALWAYS COMES BACK TO THE SUCCESS OF THE STUDENTS NOW AND
THEIR CONTINUED SUCCESS AFTER GRADUATION. I KNOW WHAT THEY CAN
DO, AND I GET TO SEE HOW THEY CONTINUE TO BE SUCCESSFUL. THAT
KEEPS ME COMMITTED TO THE WORK THAT I DO.
SO?
• SENIOR FACULTY ROUTINELY NOTE THAT…
•
THEY ONCE HELPED SHAPE INSTITUTIONAL CULTURE
•
THEY HAVE EXPERIENCE AND ARE UP TO NEW CHALLENGES
•
THEY ARE UNIQUELY CAPABLE OF CONTRIBUTING TO THE “BIG PICTURE” AND ”BIG IDEAS”
•
•
THEY PREFER TO BE ASKED TO HELP SHAPE THEM, NOT TO JUST BUY IN TO OR FOLLOW THEM
THEY CAN BE GREAT MENTORS, BUT SHOULD NOT BE RELEGATED TO THAT ROLL BY DEFAULT
•
ASSUMING THAT THIS IS “THE” ROLE FOR SENIOR FACULTY MISSES THE POINT
• WE SHOULD RECONNECT, FOCUS ON COMMUNITY, CELEBRATE AND SHOWCASE SUCCESS, AVOID “TAKING SENIOR FACULTY FOR
GRANTED”, AND INQUIRE ABOUT AND ADDRESS, NOT ASSUME, THEIR MOTIVATIONS AND INTERESTS –THEIR “MIGHTY A.C.R.E.”
• WE SHOULD CONSIDER NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR NOT-SO-NEW FACULTY.
• BE MINDFUL THAT ASSUMPTIONS FROM EITHER END (SEE SLIDE 3, COUPLED WITH PERCEPTIONS OF HOW ADMINISTRATORS VIEW
SENIOR FACULTY) CAN RAPIDLY AND UNINTENTIONALLY CREATE MICRO-AGGRESSIONS.
• BE MINDFUL OF CAREER-SPECIFIC IDENTITY AND SKILLS, BUT FOCUS ON COMMUNITY ACROSS THE CAREER-SPAN