Describes how a doctoral studies reform initiative was conducted at the University of Kentucky. Funded by a Danforth grant, the new educational administration program stresses school leadership and educational reform and was inspired by demand for distance learning technology, the Kentucky Education Reform Act, and an opportunity for hiring new…

Discusses ways to reward and promote excellent teachers based on a survey of higher education promotion practices in the United Kingdom. Highlights include the need for promotion criteria; the need for standards; balancing different areas of achievement, including teaching, research, and administration; student feedback questionnaires;…

A faculty workload study and several related campus initiatives at Kent State University (Ohio) are described, including institutional participation in a roundtable on the future of the university and the initiation of a major institutional strategic planning process. A particular focus of the efforts is on an expanded view of scholarship in…

With limited enrollment growth and the need for more efficient allocation of college and university resources, it is reasonable to expect faculty members to teach more and adjust research responsibilities. This approach shifts the focus from individual faculty agendas back to the broader mission of the institution. (MSE)

A college professor examines her feelings about working in a university, her attempts to create a more supportive and congenial relationship with fellow teachers, and the frustrations of an environment in which colleagues are out of daily communication because of workload and the need and ability to work at home. (MSE)

Comparison of faculty workload at Christian College Coalition schools and public counterparts found unionized schools more likely to be public, but faculty hour assignments and number of faculty activities granted load status did not differ significantly. Hour assignments were similar across schools. On average, load credit is awarded for seven…

A study of 564 college and university department heads investigated the most stressful situations, emergent themes, and differences between department chair and faculty stressors. Most stress came from heavy workload, time pressures, confrontations with colleagues, organizational constraints, and faculty duties. Faculty and administrative…

It is argued that universities are failing the nation's youth by giving research a higher priority than teaching. Further, it is proposed that as institutions return to teaching as their primary mission, they will have to eliminate much excess administration and ancillary, noneducational activities. (MSE)

The focus on the debate over college teaching vs. faculty research productivity, although important, ignores the central issue of the need to restore proper funding for higher education. Underfunding higher education ultimately destroys both quality and access and affects the public sector the most. (MSE)

Addresses the relationship between research and teaching in the social sciences. Explains that the study examined academic work from economics, political science, psychology, and sociology departments to determine work attitudes and practices. Concludes that teaching and research are not complementary roles but different conflicting dimensions.…

Reports on a study of the use and supervision of part-time faculty in journalism and mass communication and whether the existence of accreditation guidelines made a difference in the use and supervision of part-time faculty. (SR)

Discusses "National Labor Relations Board v. Yeshiva University," which ruled that college faculty were managers and thereby excluded from collective bargaining, focusing on why the Supreme Court classified professors as managers, whether the Court did something unusual in this case, or whether faculty is simply the unlucky vanguard of a…

Offers a practical voice from an English department chair in the trenches at Arizona State University where posttenure review was mandated. Focuses on how the chair's job was transformed by this new personnel process in terms of workload and university support or lack of it. (RS)

A study of manuscript submissions and acceptance among 509 faculty of 45 graduate social-work programs found that although faculty of all ranks made regular efforts to publish and achieve success, higher academic rank was negatively associated with frequency of manuscript submission and positively associated with acceptance. Results suggest…

A college or university's investment in information technology (IT) makes possible more effective teaching methods using both traditional and IT-based techniques, as well as making both student learning and faculty use of time more productive. A possible plan for making the transition from traditional to mixed teaching methods is presented. (MSE)