Educational Administration and Supervision Commons^™

Roundtable – Teaching Human Rights: Challenges And Best Practices, Shayna Plaut, Kristi Kenyon, Joel Pruce, William Simmons

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

Over the past 20 years, courses addressing human rights have grown dramatically at both the undergraduate and graduate levels worldwide. Many of these courses are housed in specific disciplines, focus on specific issues, and require practical experience in the form of internships/practicums. Amid this growth there is a need to reflect on teaching human rights including the challenges, fears, and best practices.

Recognizing that education takes place inside and outside a classroom, this roundtable brings together scholars teaching human rights in a variety of settings to examine the current state of university human rights education. This includes a discussion of …

Readiness For Inter-Institutional Collaboration: A Path Forward For Online Learning, Robert Arthur Paulson Phd, Shirley Ann Freed

Adventist Online Learning Conference / Conferencia de Aprendizaje en Línea

An environment conducive to inter-institutional collaboration greater utilizes intellectual and structural assets for the good of all in a growing learning community. As small colleges and universities struggle to maintain financial viability many have recognized the positive impact a collaborative environment has for all aspects of the institution. The leaders in this transition from autonomous to collaborative have been librarians and their use of technology to share databases and other assets. Organizations like the Concordia University System and The Great Plains Interactive Distance Education Alliance have been sharing structural and intellectual assets to reduce costs and risks in offering online …

Karmel Oration: Leading Schools And School Systems In Times Of Change: A Paradox And A Quest, Toby Greany

2009 - 2019 ACER Research Conferences

The ‘paradox’ in this title refers to a set of contradictions that sit at the heart of education policy in many school systems. Policymakers in these systems want things that, if not inherently at odds, are nevertheless in tension— such as a tightly defined set of national standards and a broad and balanced curriculum; academic stretch for the most able and a closing of the gap between high and low performers; choice and diversity and equity; and so on. The ‘quest’ is for leaders and leadership to resolve these tensions in practice. School autonomy policies have placed huge power in …

Leadership That Transforms Schools And School Systems, Brian Caldwell

2009 - 2019 ACER Research Conferences

This paper will report on the findings of four international research projects on leadership in high-performing school systems around the world. The paper will focus on building the capacity of school leaders to exercise professional autonomy and how different levels of government achieve strategic alignment among policies in their efforts to lift performance. The paper will summarise findings reported in The Autonomy Premium published in 2016 by ACER Press, along with the findings of a national survey of principals in Australia. The major part of this presentation is devoted to comparing Australia on 15 benchmarks derived from international studies in …

Leading Empowered Evaluations To Develop Trust And Improve Learning: Insights From Qualitative Research, Peter Mcclenaghan, Kerrie Ikin

2009 - 2019 ACER Research Conferences

What does ‘empowering teachers-as-evaluators’ mean in whole-school strategic planning and evaluation? Our work seeks to develop and empower teachers as whole-of-school evaluators to embrace ownership of the school’s plan and directions, build communities of practice, create transparency, openness and trust, and ultimately improve student learning outcomes. Our previous research in whole-school qualitative empowerment evaluation showed that principals who were fully engaged in their schools’ evaluations were more likely to be influenced by the evaluation process, use the evaluation results and build evaluation capacity than those who merely participated as a guest. They engaged in double-loop learning. We further found that …

Meaningful Reviews: Reframing Evaluation To Yield Positive Change, Sharon Decker

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This session will focus on how to reframe the culture of evaluation in order to encourage active and engaged faculty participation. The discussion will center on objectives, forms, and outcomes in order to create a process that will ultimately improve pedagogical techniques and philosophies.

Positive Academic Leadership: Stop Putting Out Fires; Start Making A Difference, Jeff Buller

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

A highly interactive workshop on strategies that can help chairs move towards positive outcomes in even the most negative of situations, making their leadership more effective, effortless, and enjoyable.

2.0 Academic Management: "Disruptive Innovation" For The 21st Century, Don Chu

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This workshop will focus on assisting educational leaders to re-imagine academic departments and how they are managed in the 21st Century. Re-imagining the academic department will strengthen them as the foundation upon which college and university change may be built. Led by the chair and the faculty-administrative leadership team, departments will be primarily responsible to set and reach their goals, as well as manage their own resources and professional development. Themes that will be discussed include curriculum development, course schedules, student services, personnel and ‘political’ issues, department resources and more.

Department Leadership In Action: Enhancing Your Leadership And Academic Team, Dr. Walter H. Gmelch

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This workshop will explore four key leadership questions: what is an academic leader and why should you serve; how to develop as a leader; how long is long enough to serve; and what legacy will you leave? Participants will develop strategies for effectively developing your team through shared leadership, consensual decision-making, constructive conflict, collegiality and more. The workshop also includes a discussion of exploring the “road less traveled,” managing transitions to and from academic leadership.

The Role Of Administrative Support In The Retention Of Special Education Teachers, Atinart Koonkongsatian

Scholarly and Creative Works Conference (2015 - 2021)

Administrative support towards special education teachers can be a determining factor towards their success in regards to teacher retention, motivation, and overall happiness. Special education teachers face large amounts of paperwork, meetings, and other administrative duties that they are expected to complete in addition to the various teaching duties required as well. The amount of work given can lead to feelings of stress, inadequacy, and most importantly, a lack of desire to continue working in the field of special education. The quantity and quality of administrative support towards special education teachers can play an important role in the retention, motivation, …

Change Leadership In Higher Education, Jeff Buller

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

A highly interactive session dealing with why change is so difficult in higher education and how we can be more effective in implementing needed changes. Based on the latest studies of effective change in higher education, participants will come away from this session with a practical plan for overcoming their own resistance to change and bringing others on board when change has to occur in their program or at their institution.

Turning A Department Into A High Performing Team, Lorri F. Engstrom, Del Engstrom

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This session will provide Chairs/Deans the skills and research base for using a team approach to build social capital and create a high performing departmental team. Experiential learning activities will be used to demonstrate the key components of high performing teams, and the pedagogical strategies to successfully implement teams.

Positive Academic Leadership: Stop Putting Out Fires; Start Making A Difference, Jeff Buller

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

A highly interactive workshop on strategies that can help chairs move towards positive outcomes in even the most negative of situations, making their leadership more effective, effortless, and enjoyable. Participants will come away from this workshop with clear, practical ideas about how they can help their departments become more positive, visionary, and forward-looking.

Departmental Fights: Finding Solutions And Maintaining Sanity As Chair, Ethan W. Krase, Gian S. Pagnucci

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

While circumstances of departmental conflicts are variable, one constant is that as chairs we end up involved. Although chairs cannot prevent conflict from occurring, there are steps we can take to minimize the consequences. This session offers strategies chairs can use to lead their departments through conflict more productively.

Leadership Development For Department Chairs: Learnings Across Three Approaches, Emily R. Smith, Patricia E. Calderwood, Paula Gill Lopez, Ryan Colwell

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This session shares insights and recommendations from three approaches to faculty leadership development: a co-mentoring group for faculty leaders; a community of practice for mentoring; and a leadership development cohort. Participants will be invited assess and revise these recommendations to jointly inform best practices in faculty leadership development.

The Growing Challenge Of Dual Credit/Enrollment, Eric G. Tenbus, Daniel Schierenbeck

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Face the dual credit challenge by taking back control of the program and strengthening it to ensure high academic standards. This presentation will explain the dual credit phenomenon and offer practical advice in countering it, navigating the political landmines, and making it work better for your department.

Beyond Engagement: Promoting Non-Monetary Social Relevance In Contemporary Academic Departments, Mengie M. Parker, Carrie Longley

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This presentation outlines methods of creating academic social relevance that are not based on simple monetary value thereby affording academic departments a measure of protection against undue resource attenuation. The presentation provides methods of promoting both internal and external social relevance as well as methods for measuring and reporting growth in departmental social relevance.

“Traversing The Legal Minefields That Surround Academic Chairpersons”, Nathan M. Roberts

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The presenter will describe common higher education law issues encountered by Chairpersons and provide a framework for analyzing them to protect the department and the Chairperson. Perspective on the process will be offered by a former chairperson, now dean, who is also an attorney and teaches courses in education law.

Dealing With Campus Safety Issues, Nancy P. Kropf

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

As an administrator, traumatic and unexpected events in a unit require a unit head to deal with the situation and related consequences. Using examples of events that have impacted safety of students and faculty, this presentation will highlight responses when dealing with harmful or threatening campus experiences.

Evaluating Workload: A Collaborative Approach Between Dean And Department Chair, Melissa J. Marcucci Ph.D., Sandra G. Affenito Ph.D., R.D. Fand

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Faculty workload calculations are complex and an institution’s mission directs the level of faculty participation in each teaching, scholarship and service. The University of Saint Joseph (USJ; West Hartford, Connecticut) transitioned from a college to a university, necessitating reexamination of faculty workload policy. The review was conducted collaboratively between senior administration and key faculty to understand best practices in calculating teaching workload. A review of best practice, evaluation of workload policies at a defined set of peer institutions, and an internal investigation of the types of course offered by USJ faculty was examined.

Department Budgeting And Resources, Don Chu, Kimihko Nomura

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Departments are faced with reduced appropriations and increased demands on their budgets. We will look at the three keys to respond to this fiscal environment and position your department for a brighter future: budget basics, management aimed at productivity and strategic investment, and increasing resource flow.

A Flexible, Incentivized Budgeting System For Academic Departments, N. Douglas Lees

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This session will involve a discussion of the budgeting models of the attendees and a discussion of their overall needs for budgeting guidance. An overview of Responsibility Centered Management (RCM) will be provided along with the model used to set budgets for departments in a School of Science.

Taking On Unexpected Leadership Roles, Alicia Domack

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Leaders are occasionally asked to take on new roles with very little notice. This session will present new chairs with some concrete tips to help individuals taking on unexpected leadership roles survive and eventually thrive in the position.

The Inevitability Of Playing Politics As Chair: Advantages And Pitfall, Domenick J. Pinto

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Politics is a term often frowned upon as it pertains to the role of an academic leader. However as chair for almost 30 years it has become an essential yet sometimes unwanted aspect of the daily rigors of the position. This workshop explores the advantages and pitfalls of “playing politics” as a department chair and allows interactivity among participants in “what if” scenarios.

Tackling The Bullies In Academe, Jorg Waltje Phd, Laura Trujillo-Jenks Phd

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Severely hurtful and undermining behavior is on the increase at university campuses, partly due to the widespread jealousy and competition that is naturally prevalent in higher education. This interactive workshop will provide strategies for chairs who have to deal with difficult faculty, but it will also point out ways to create a departmental atmosphere of civility and collegiality in which bullies cannot thrive. We will use case studies to analyze realistic scenarios that can later be used by chairpersons to encourage discussions on plans of action and solutions in their home departments.

Turning Prospects Into Superstars: The Department Chair’S Role In Mentoring Junior Faculty., Christian K. Hansen

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Department chairs play a major role in helping new faculty members succeed and become valued and productive member of the faculty. In smaller department, chairs often mentor junior faculty directly, whereas in larger department the chair sometimes has a role in assigning senior faculty mentors to mentor new faculty. Some have referred to hiring faculty as a million dollar investment, and in reality, more than a million dollars is invested from the time the faculty ad is composed until the hired faculty member enter the ranks as a tenured faculty member. When a hired faculty member is turned down for …

Difficult Department Chair Conversations Ignatian Style, Janet Kupperman 5014750

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The session will explore different types of difficult conversations department chairs have and reasons the encounters may be considered difficult, introduce an Ignatian framework for having conversations, and give participants practice having difficult conversations from an Ignatian perspective.

A Blended Family: Leadership Of Multi-Disciplinary Departments, Barbara Bonnekessen, Celia Patterson

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Seeking cost-saving measures, universities are turning to bundling departments to save chairs’ salaries and support staff positions. The presenters (one with six years experience in two multi-disciplinary units and one who managed the merger of a multi-disciplinary department) will address the unique challenges and opportunities arising from these academic units.

Developing A New Department Culture: When Programs Merge, William Hoon, Aimee Shouse

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This presentation will discuss some best practices that help transitioning cultures in merged or merging academic departments.

Program Leaders’ New Tools For Outcomes Assessment And Improvement, Jacqueline Kress

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Academic leaders are expected to build cultures of inquiry and continuous improvement. This session provides practical examples of teacher-as-researcher tools, such as policy audits, Pareto charts, affinity exercises, curriculum control files, and data review calendars, that academic leaders can use to meet new demands for evidence-based decisions.