Educational Administration and Supervision | Open Access Articles

Keeping Graduate Programs Responsive To National Needs, N. Edd Miller

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Reviews the book "Keeping Graduate Programs Responsive to National Needs," by Michael J. Pelczar and Lewis C. Solman (Eds). Jossey-Bass Publishers. 1984.

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Burnout: The New Academic Disease, John E. Buckley

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Reviews the book "Burnout: The New Academic Disease," by Winifred Albizu Melandez and Rafael M. de Guzman. Washington, D.C; Association for the Study of Higher Education, 1983.

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Aca News

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Organizational news section reporting activities and decisions of the Association for Communication Administration in 1984–1985. Documents the succession of leadership as a new president assumes office and a president-elect is appointed, outlining their prior roles, responsibilities for national and regional convention programming, and plans for an upcoming annual seminar in Denver. Records the results of a closely contested Executive Committee election, noting high ballot return rates and the administrators elected to replace outgoing members. Provides statistical information on unsolicited manuscript submissions to the ACA Bulletin by topical category, including acceptance and rejection patterns, and lists the referees who contributed to …

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Aca At The Regionals

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Organizational news feature detailing Association for Communication Administration sponsorship of administrative programs at several 1985 regional conventions in speech communication and theatre. It outlines ACA panels at the Western Speech Communication Association meeting on administrative concerns, including sessions introducing academic administration careers and debating doctoral versus terminal master’s degrees in theatre. At the Southeastern Theatre Conference, it documents multiple programs on off-campus summer theatre administration, criteria for evaluating creative activity in tenure and promotion, tenuring technical theatre faculty, censorship in college and university theatres, and methods for evaluating theatre training programs. Additional ACA-sponsored sessions at Central States Speech Association, Southern …

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The Chief Administrator As Legal Authority, Joan Van Tol

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The role of the department chair as legal authority in higher education is examined through three major areas of potential liability: academic planning, student-related issues, and employment matters. Academic planning discussions address admissions policies for disabled and disadvantaged students, legal constraints on program elimination during periods of retrenchment, and the contractual force of catalogs and changing degree requirements. Student-focused sections consider the standards for academic and disciplinary dismissal, appropriate responses to disruptive or mentally ill students, and the protection and disclosure of educational records under federal legislation. Employment issues include affirmative action and Title VII obligations in hiring, the contractual …

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Department Chairs And The Law, Patti P. Gillespie

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The contemporary legal environment for department chairs is explored through six recurring areas of risk that shape everyday academic administration in higher education, with special attention to theatre programs. The discussion begins with equal opportunity, discrimination, and affirmative action, emphasizing up-to-date knowledge of policy interpretation, careful drafting of advertisements, equitable salary practices, and meticulous recordkeeping across hiring, promotion, and termination decisions. It then turns to retention, promotion, tenure, and salary, stressing clear written procedures, consistent application, pattern awareness across decisions, and early consultation with university counsel in cases involving dismissal or disclosure of sensitive information. Additional sections examine “truth in …

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12th Annual Seminar: Roles And Powers Of Administrators, James E. Roever

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This introduction presents the theme and structure of a seminar devoted to roles and powers in communication administration. It situates the collected essays, case studies, and discussion reports as resources for examining administrative responsibilities in departments, colleges, and professional settings. The introduction outlines sessions addressing the work of chairs, deans, fellows, and other communication administrators, with attention to leadership, common problems, and the development of administrative skill in speech communication and higher education.

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The Flat Earth: Ideas Concerning The Current Financial Situation In Higher Education, J. Robert Wills

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This article addresses financial constraint in higher education, with particular attention to communication and arts programs. Using the Flat Earth Society as an opening metaphor, it cautions against relying on outdated assumptions about institutional resources and academic priorities. The article identifies several financial “myths,” including the beliefs that uncommitted money remains available, that existing funds are always spent wisely, that need alone determines resource allocation, and that communication and arts programs face uniquely difficult circumstances. It then lists institutional responses to financial distress, such as program reductions, hiring freezes, increased workloads, and reduced services. The article concludes by urging departments …

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Perspective Of A Department With Units In Speech Communication, Theatre, And Mass Communication, Edward J. Pappas

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This article describes the organization, advantages, and challenges of a large multidisciplinary communication department at Wayne State University. It situates the department within varied organizational models for communication-related programs at Michigan public universities and outlines the historical development of Wayne State’s combined structure in speech communication, theatre, journalism, radio-television-film, communication disorders, and related areas. The article identifies benefits of the umbrella department model, including enrollment strength, budgetary influence, graduate student teaching opportunities, administrative committees, and interdisciplinary program coordination. It also describes difficulties related to explaining the department’s mission to college administrators, evaluating promotion and tenure across distinct fields, allocating resources …

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Theatre Within A Speech-Theatre Department, Carla Waal

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This article examines the place of theatre within combined speech and theatre departments, using the Department of Speech and Dramatic Art at the University of Missouri, Columbia as a central example. It outlines the department’s historical development from rhetoric and public speaking, the addition of theatre and radio-television-film, and the effects of housing related areas within one administrative unit. The article describes both the practical advantages of consolidation, including political influence, enrollment strength, service courses, and graduate assistantships, and the challenges of shared governance, budget priorities, facilities, area identity, and administrative responsibility. It also considers whether theatre programs are better …

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A Response To Merged Or Independent Departments, Robert K. Tiemens

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This article responds to arguments about merged and independent department structures in communication-related fields. Drawing on the Department of Communication at the University of Utah, it describes how a formal merger of speech, journalism, speech pathology, and audiology did not immediately create an integrated department, but gradually developed through budget consolidation, shared administrative policies, geographic relocation, and revised leadership roles. The article emphasizes that no single organizational structure suits all institutions and that departments often must adapt to structures shaped by higher administrative decisions. It critiques arguments based mainly on enrollment, required basic courses, public relations, or political influence, and …

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Opportunities For Speech Communication Faculty Under Collective Bargaining: Grievance Processing, Marilyn J. Young

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Collective bargaining grievance procedures are presented as an area in which speech communication faculty can apply disciplinary training in argumentation, persuasion, audience analysis, rhetorical analysis, small group communication, and nonverbal communication. The article explains how these skills support grievance work from the initial assessment of a complaint through informal settlement discussions, campus-level meetings, system-level appeals, and binding arbitration. Using the State University System of Florida as an example, it describes faculty grievance processing under a collective bargaining agreement and emphasizes the importance of evidence, argument construction, settlement language, audience adaptation, and communication with both administrators and grievants. The article also …

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Lessons From T.H. Gallaudet: Learning About Language And Communication By Teaching Deaf People, James J. Fernandes

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet’s writings on deaf education are presented as early contributions to communication theory and pedagogy. The article connects Gallaudet’s nineteenth-century work on language, signs, meaning, and education to later ideas associated with rhetorical theory, communication instruction, and nonverbal communication. It highlights Gallaudet’s view that language does not contain meaning by itself but prompts understanding through shared experience and interpretation. The article also describes his advocacy for early communication education, child-centered language instruction, and the use of visual-gestural communication to develop expressive skill. Attention is given to the relationship between deaf education and speech communication, including the value of …

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A Major In Public And Corporate Communication: Curriculum Development And Implementation At A Small University, William W. Neher, Royce E. Flood

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Curriculum development for a public and corporate communication major at Butler University is described as a response to student interest in career-oriented liberal arts education. The article explains how the program combined speech communication, English, journalism, and radio-television coursework to prepare students for public relations, corporate communication, media, and public-sector communication roles. It outlines the influence of public relations education recommendations, community advisory input, and faculty committee planning on the program’s design. The curriculum includes a university core, major requirements across four departments, cognate options in business administration or public affairs, and internship opportunities with communication-related organizations. The article also …

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Evaluating Convention Papers, Wayne E. Hensley

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Convention papers are examined as a form of professional activity that is often difficult for tenure and promotion committees to assess. The article identifies a paradox in which convention participation is valued as evidence of professional engagement, yet convention papers often receive little weight in personnel decisions because committees lack clear information about their quality or selection process. It proposes a reporting framework that distinguishes among competitively selected papers, invited papers, and papers merely presented or made available at conferences. Particular attention is given to the importance of documenting peer review, selection procedures, and referee evaluations when available. The article …

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Notes From The President, James E. Roever

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This brief presidential note reports on 1984 activities of the Association for Communication Administration, with emphasis on expanding affiliations with communication-related professional associations. It describes planned collaboration with the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, ongoing efforts to connect with theatre and communication organizations, and existing affiliations with regional and national associations. The note also updates members on a forthcoming revision of the Careers in Communication brochure, review of the Consultant Service membership pool, committee and task force reorganization, and registration for the 12th Annual Seminar in Chicago. The piece concludes with acknowledgments to ACA officers, committee members, and participants in association programs.

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Figuring Workload Equivalencies Of Performance/Production Assignments For Theatre Faculty, Lorayne W. Lester, Robert Yowell, Donald L. Loeffler

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Originating from an ACA-sponsored symposium at the 1983 Southeastern Theatre Conference Convention, this piece addresses how theatre faculty workload should account for performance and production assignments. The symposium introduction identifies the discussion as an effort to document common practices among theatre programs at Southeastern colleges and universities. The published contributions focus on directing, design, technical supervision, practicum instruction, and summer production work as forms of teaching, research, creative activity, and university service. Particular attention is given to the need for academic administrators to recognize theatre production as part of faculty workload rather than as uncompensated service. The piece also describes …

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Faculty Evaluation: Communicating The Criteria And Expectations, Jon Whitmore

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Focused on faculty evaluation in theatre programs, this article emphasizes the importance of clearly communicating criteria, standards, evidence, and procedures for promotion, tenure, merit pay, and annual review. It describes faculty evaluation as a process intended to improve teaching, research, creative activity, and service, while noting that unclear expectations can create distrust and conflict among faculty and administrators. The article recommends that chairpersons meet annually with faculty members to establish written expectations in teaching, research and creative work, and service, including the relative weight of each area. It also presents sample rank-based criteria from a college evaluation document and discusses …

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Promotion And Tenure Policies At The University Of Tennessee, Knoxville, G. Allen Yeomans

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Promotion and tenure procedures at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville are presented through university, college, and departmental policies, with particular attention to the Department of Speech and Theatre. The article explains that tenure decisions are initiated by the department head and tenured faculty rather than by formal application, while candidates carry responsibility for providing evidence of teaching, scholarship or creative activity, and service. It outlines policies on probationary periods, consultation with faculty in related units, the relationship between promotion and tenure, and departmental procedures for notification, information gathering, evaluation, voting, and communication of results. Special attention is given to theatre …

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Enrollment Patterns And Curricular Trends: Implications For Communication Administrators And Educators, Darlyn R. Wolvin

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Enrollment and curriculum trends in higher education are discussed in relation to communication education, vocational preparation, and changing labor-market expectations. The article reviews research on community college enrollment growth, the expansion of postsecondary vocational programs, and debates about whether high-technology employment requires narrow technical training or broader analytical and communicative skills. It argues that communication administrators and educators should attend to both workplace preparation and the “high touch” dimensions of human interaction, including interpersonal, family, organizational, and career-related communication. Studies of workforce basic skills are used to emphasize the importance of speaking and listening across job categories. The article frames …

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Nonverbal Communication Of The Deaf, Jayne S. Lytle

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Nonverbal communication among deaf people is discussed in relation to American Sign Language, Deaf culture, and interactions between deaf and hearing people. The article distinguishes between nonverbal behavior and the visual linguistic features of ASL, noting that movements of the face, eyes, head, and body may function as part of the language rather than as merely expressive gestures. It reviews assumptions about deaf people’s receptive and expressive nonverbal abilities, including the idea that visual communication automatically produces greater skill in interpreting body language. The article describes characteristic behaviors related to proxemics, touch, attention-getting gestures, eye gaze, and paralanguage, with attention …

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Potpourri

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This miscellany brings together short notices and commentary on issues affecting communication arts and sciences, higher education, and academic administration in the early 1980s. Topics include the employment outlook for college graduates, career preparation for communication majors, job-search advice, recommended speaking, listening, and theatre competencies for high school students, research ethics guidance from the Association of American Universities, the status of teaching, burnout, women in academic administration, college preparation, graduate degree completion, and professional development. The item functions as a bulletin-style roundup, connecting labor-market trends, curriculum planning, faculty work, and administrative concerns relevant to communication and theatre educators.

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The Merged College Of Mass Communication, Robert O. Blanchard

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

This article considers the organization of academic communication programs, focusing on the advantages and challenges of merged and fragmented institutional structures. Drawing on experiences at Pennsylvania State University, American University, and Trinity University, the article contrasts dispersed communication-related programs with more integrated arrangements. It describes how fragmented structures can separate faculty, courses, facilities, equipment, and students across multiple departments or colleges, creating difficulties for coordination and program development. The article also outlines examples of merger, including the incorporation of speech, journalism, public relations, broadcasting, and related courses into broader communication programs. It identifies potential benefits of merged units, including improved …

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Aca Consultant Service: The Departmental Point Of View, N. Edd Miller

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Focused on the departmental use of external consultants, this article outlines reasons a department may seek or be assigned a review, including leadership changes, curriculum revision, reorganization, periodic evaluation, or internal crisis. It describes expectations for a consultant visit, such as encouraging departmental self-study, providing an objective assessment, and producing recommendations useful for communication with administrators and colleagues. The article also details practical preparation for a consultant review, including clarifying the purpose of the visit, gathering materials, arranging schedules, preparing administrators and faculty, and determining how the final report will be used. Particular attention is given to the ACA Consultant …

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Program Evaluation And Elimination: A Case Study, Edward L. Mcglone

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Focused on academic program review in Mississippi public universities, this case study describes how a statewide evaluation process led to the proposed elimination of an undergraduate French program despite favorable consultant assessment. The piece recounts the review structure, the role of external consultants, the use of mission statements by governing boards, and the conflict between consultant reports and administrative summaries. It also documents responses from faculty, professional organizations, alumni, and national higher education groups, emphasizing concerns about transparency, liberal arts education, and the ethical use of external evaluation. The article concludes with guidance for departments undergoing review, including the importance …

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A Strategy For Securing Tenure And Promotion For The Theatre Artist/Teacher, James A. Patterson

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The tenure and promotion status of theatre artist-teachers is examined through a survey of South Carolina college and university theatre units. The article identifies several challenges in applying traditional academic evaluation criteria to theatre faculty, including limited recognition of creative work as scholarship, inconsistent acceptance of the MFA as a terminal degree, and the absence of discipline-specific tenure and promotion documents. It recommends that theatre administrators develop formal policies that recognize artistic activity as equivalent to scholarly research and publication, establish the MFA as an appropriate terminal degree for theatre artists, and require systematic evaluation of production work. The article …

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Promotion And Tenure Procedures For Faculty Holding The Mfa, Stephen M. Archer, Patrick Atkison

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Policies for evaluating MFA degree holders in the Department of Speech and Dramatic Art at the University of Missouri, Columbia are outlined in relation to promotion and tenure. The article distinguishes between the creative activity expected of MFA faculty and the research or scholarly work often associated with PhD faculty, while noting that teaching and service expectations are largely similar. It identifies appropriate areas of theatre production for creative evaluation, including playwriting, scenic design, lighting design, costume design, directing, choreography, makeup design, property design, acting, and technical direction. The article also lists possible sources of evaluation, including professional adjudication, regional …

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As They Are: How Relevant Are Professional Publications For Theatre In Academe?, David L. Jorns

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Using the closure of Exchange: A Journal of Opinion for the Performing Arts as a starting point, this article examines the relationship between academic theatre professionals and professional publications. It describes the journal’s original purpose as an outlet for performance faculty in higher education and traces how its audience, submissions, and circulation diverged from those expectations. The article considers low readership and publication rates among theatre faculty, the role of automatic association subscriptions in sustaining some journals, and survey findings suggesting that creative production is often accepted in place of refereed publication for promotion and tenure. It argues that many …

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Unionization And The Speech Communication Department, Ralph Towne

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Unionization is examined in relation to speech communication departments and the disciplinary skills they can bring to faculty collective bargaining. Drawing on the context of a unionized university, the article argues that speech communication faculty are well positioned to contribute to negotiation, grievance and arbitration procedures, persuasion of union membership, lobbying, and problem solving because of their training in argumentation, debate, interpersonal communication, and persuasion. It also discusses the potential departmental benefits of union leadership, including increased recognition of the field’s practical value by colleagues in other disciplines. The article identifies possible risks, including administrative resistance toward departments whose members …

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Training And Development: A Career Alternative, John R. Johnson

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Training and development is presented as a career path for speech communication students in response to reduced teaching opportunities and growing interest in nonteaching employment. The article describes training and development as a business, industry, and government function that depends on teaching, communication, facilitation, program design, needs analysis, media use, research, and human resource skills. It reviews professional role descriptions and survey findings indicating that human relations and communication skills are central to effective training practice. The article also summarizes employer studies identifying oral communication, writing, and interpersonal communication as common weaknesses among college graduates and as barriers to job …

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Full-Text Articles in Educational Administration and Supervision

Keeping Graduate Programs Responsive To National Needs, N. Edd Miller

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Burnout: The New Academic Disease, John E. Buckley

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Aca News

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Aca At The Regionals

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The Chief Administrator As Legal Authority, Joan Van Tol

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Department Chairs And The Law, Patti P. Gillespie

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

12th Annual Seminar: Roles And Powers Of Administrators, James E. Roever

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The Flat Earth: Ideas Concerning The Current Financial Situation In Higher Education, J. Robert Wills

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Perspective Of A Department With Units In Speech Communication, Theatre, And Mass Communication, Edward J. Pappas

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Theatre Within A Speech-Theatre Department, Carla Waal

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

A Response To Merged Or Independent Departments, Robert K. Tiemens

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Opportunities For Speech Communication Faculty Under Collective Bargaining: Grievance Processing, Marilyn J. Young

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Lessons From T.H. Gallaudet: Learning About Language And Communication By Teaching Deaf People, James J. Fernandes

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

A Major In Public And Corporate Communication: Curriculum Development And Implementation At A Small University, William W. Neher, Royce E. Flood

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Evaluating Convention Papers, Wayne E. Hensley

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Notes From The President, James E. Roever

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Figuring Workload Equivalencies Of Performance/Production Assignments For Theatre Faculty, Lorayne W. Lester, Robert Yowell, Donald L. Loeffler

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Faculty Evaluation: Communicating The Criteria And Expectations, Jon Whitmore

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Promotion And Tenure Policies At The University Of Tennessee, Knoxville, G. Allen Yeomans

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Enrollment Patterns And Curricular Trends: Implications For Communication Administrators And Educators, Darlyn R. Wolvin

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Nonverbal Communication Of The Deaf, Jayne S. Lytle

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Potpourri

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

The Merged College Of Mass Communication, Robert O. Blanchard

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Aca Consultant Service: The Departmental Point Of View, N. Edd Miller

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Program Evaluation And Elimination: A Case Study, Edward L. Mcglone

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

A Strategy For Securing Tenure And Promotion For The Theatre Artist/Teacher, James A. Patterson

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Promotion And Tenure Procedures For Faculty Holding The Mfa, Stephen M. Archer, Patrick Atkison

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

As They Are: How Relevant Are Professional Publications For Theatre In Academe?, David L. Jorns

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Unionization And The Speech Communication Department, Ralph Towne

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin

Training And Development: A Career Alternative, John R. Johnson

Association for Communication Administration Bulletin