The number of staff members serving American higher education institutions has more than doubled in the past twenty years, as occupations in technology, development, government relations, and even athletic administration have grown as never before in the history of the academy. As the number, variety, and importance of these positions have grown,…

This book presents a series of personal essays in which the author analyzes and dramatizes the significance of subordination in academic life. Academic life is examined in terms of issues (such as sexual harassment) and structures (such as the figure of the dissertation director) but especially in terms of texts. The book looks at the stream of…

The level of professional development and functioning of the academic adviser is discussed. According to Canon (1976), professionals function on three levels of development. Advisers at the first level of functioning are primarily identified to their professional subspecialty and subunit (e.g., peer advising, undeclared students). Such staff…

This report details the second stage of a study of the perceived relative importance of research and undergraduate teaching at American colleges and universities. Phase II of the study was conducted from 1992 to 1994; this phase extended the survey from 49 research and doctoral institutions to 187 four-year institutions. Two key items reported in…

The "Heeding New Voices" study, a year-long series of structured interviews with new faculty and graduate students aspiring to be faculty members around the country, sought both to give voice to those who are just beginning their academic careers and to provide guidance for the senior faculty, chairs, deans, and others in higher…

Purpose: In this paper teaching excellence awards are evaluated, with an eye to improving them. Design/methodology/approach: Literature is reviewed and an analytic framework developed in Canada is modified to apply to the University of Sydney's Vice Chancellor Outstanding Teaching Award. Data come from 60 respondents familiar with the Sydney award…

Collective bargaining is a bilateral decision-making process where representatives of the faculty and of the college must come to some mutual agreement on items that are listed in the body of the contract. Typically, the adversarial or competitive bargaining approach is used to resolve differences between the two sides, but there are some mutually…

The experience of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville suggests that encouraging research office staff to apply for grants can be a rewarding learning experience and can improve office visibility and credibility, staff confidence and professionalism, and staff sensitivity to faculty involved in grants development. (MSE)

The successful orientation of new university professors has benefits for both the new professor and the university. For the faculty member, benefits of rapid orientation to the new position involve greater control of the factors that cause stress to professors, more rapid pursuit of the contributions that lead to future promotion and tenure, and…

Designed to encourage college administrators to place greater priority on faculty evaluation, this report provides an overview of the processes and outcomes of faculty evaluation and examines its relationship to faculty development and instructional improvement. Introductory comments recognize the lack of emphasis generally placed on faculty…

The AAUP's committee on College and University Government's response to the American Association of State Colleges and Universities' statement on academic governance and the faculty role in it is presented. (MSE)

Tenured law professors are generally exempt from threat of "publish or perish," but not because of excessive professorial power, cowardice, or institutional inertia. Except in clear cases of sloth, the exemption is essential to postprobationary academic freedom. After tenure, the institution trusts the scholar to monitor himself. (MSE)

Mediation programs in higher education devoted to resolution of faculty conflicts are discussed. The nature of the faculty enterprise and faculty peer conflicts is examined, and three universities' efforts to incorporate faculty-to-faculty conflict resolution systems on campus are described. The organizational culture of each institution defined…

This paper presents an introduction to higher education models of ethical orientation and a series of exercises that were part of a workshop on ethics given by the Small Business Institute Directors' Association (SBIDA). Three models of ethical orientation include a self-interest orientation, with the professor solely concerned with his…

The role of part-time faculty in the community college is discussed in this paper along with ways of improving their performance and morale. Introductory material outlines the advantages of employing part-time teachers (e.g., low cost, high motivation, and fewer commitments), and specifies some of their particular needs (e.g., stability, provision…