Diverse Paths to the Presidency
Oh, no! You won't be getting a printed SCUP–45 Preliminary Program in the mail this year. Instead, SCUP is going green and regularly updating this digital version (PDF), which you can download at any time. Check it out! You don't want to miss higher education's premier planning conference, and your one chance this year to assemble with nearly 1,500 of your peers and colleagues: July 10–14, Minneapolis.
SCUP Link
In University Business magazine, Melisa Ezarik (who often comes to SCUP conferences, we hope to see you in Minneapolis in July, Melissa!) shares this article which is blurbed: "With shrinking candidate pools, retirements on the horizon, and new realities for institutions and their leaders, it’s time to broaden higher education’s idea of the best career path to get there." As higher education evolves, what it means to be a college president may well evolve, too. “Clearly the times are demanding people to think creatively and differently about pedagogy, curricula, delivery systems, and the entire process,” says Courtice. He sees some institutions deciding they don’t need to change the model of who a president is just yet, while others will realize they’ve got to change now.
Storbeck believes a close look at the expectations of presidents is in order. “The nature of the job, the 24/7 [aspect]—it’s heavy lifting in every direction. … There must be ways to make the job a little bit more manageable for people so they’re not feeling after two to three years that they’ve used up all the gas in the tank,” she says.
Regional SCUP Events! Enjoy the F2F company of your colleagues and peers at one of three SCUP regional conferences this spring: - March 24–26: Cambridge, MA - "Strengths and Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats"
- April 5–7, San Diego, CA - "Smart Planning in an Era of Uncertainty"
- April 7, Houston, TX - "Sustaining Higher Education in an Age of Challenge"
Labels: career, leadership, presidency, presidents
New Plan for '21st Century Maricopa'
In an article titled Efficiency from Incompetence, David Moltz, writing in Inside Higher Ed, examines tensions in and around the Maricopa Community College District. Maricopa's board of directors hired external consultants for $1.4M and has asked its chancellor to review for implementation the many changes in the resulting plan, which is titled "21st Century Maricopa." There are many interesting dimensions to the circumstances. SCUPers will be interested in looking at the plan and its supporting documents. According to Molz, tensions are so high that many thought the consultants would be hired for the plan's implementation, but the board has charged the chancellor with the redesign of the entire district. From Moltz's report: Months after it was chastised by an independent panel for displaying “a consistent lack of civility” and creating “a climate of fear and mistrust,” the governing board of the Maricopa County Community College District has asked its chancellor to review and possibly implement a sweeping series of recommendations to improve the “efficiency” of the Arizona system. The plan to redesign the district, marketed under the moniker “21st Century Maricopa,” is the result of $1.4 million worth of Alvarez & Marsal consulting work requested by the governing board last summer. The request, however, was made before the college district’s accreditor, the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, encouraged an independent panel to examine an anonymous complaint it received alleging that the Maricopa board had put the district’s accreditation at risk by severely micromanaging educators.
The board’s hiring of outside consultants to weed out redundancies in the district and find further ways to save money is viewed by many local observers as a slight against Maricopa's leadership.
Regional SCUP Events! Enjoy the F2F company of your colleagues and peers at one of three SCUP regional conferences this spring:
Labels: community colleges, county community college district, governance, governing boards, leadership, Maricopa, strategic planning
While You're Changing Things, Think About Making the Change Last
 This is a thoughtful resource and well worth reading with regard to any institutional planning, not just in the area of its focus: Student services. The author, Robin P. Krakowsky is senior vice president of administration, Johnson & Wales University. Writing in Business Officer, she notes that he found plenty of specific information about the vast changes in student services that have been made on many campuses in the last 20 years, but little about how to sustain those changes once made. He undertook some research and serves up results, analysis, and a model: The resulting “Model for Sustaining Change in Higher Education Administrative Student Services” (see table) describes the primary and secondary factors that help make change a reality as well as the related commitments and actions that sustain the changes over time. A discussion of the model's application will come later in this article . . .
Not surprisingly, the elements most relevant and critical for supporting continuous improvement, increased effectiveness, and sustainable change center on people and the organizational culture. These three primary factors fall into three categories: leadership; human—both managerial and individual; and cultural. 
Regional SCUP Events! Enjoy the F2F company of your colleagues and peers at one of three SCUP regional conferences this spring: Labels: change, change management, colorfast, institutional planning, leadership, student services planning
New Book: An Evil Side to 'Positive Thinking'?
 As one who found the book, Who Moved My Cheese?, to be incredibly condescending, Kerry Howley's review of Barbara Ehrenreich's new book, Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America, is sufficient to ensure that this blogger will find that book and read it. The review is published in Reason and we found it via The Chronicle of Higher Education's Arts & Letters Daily. If you purchase the book through this link at Amazon, SCUP will receive a small percentage of the purchase price. Ehrenreich weighs down her argument with dubious chains of causation and ponderous overstatement, but her central point still shines through the mess. Platitudinous happy-talk seems so harmless that most of us barely notice it, yet it can be a burdensome, even bullying, attempt to enforce emotional conformity. Ehrenreich is always interesting, always comes from a politically progressive perspective, and the processes by which she comes to conclusions are often easy to disagree with. But she makes unique and thought-provoking observations about our culture.
We think a planner would find her observations about the ubiquity of positive thinking, and its "cultural pressure so totalizing we sometimes fail to notice its existence," of interest in organizing and observing stakeholder meetings, focus groups, and the like.
Regional SCUP Events! Enjoy the F2F company of your colleagues and peers at one of three SCUP regional conferences this spring:
Labels: books, change management, institutional planning, leadership, positive thinking
What We Found This Morning
 Sometimes it's lonely on campus, being a planner. Start planning now to attend higher education's premier planning conference for 2010, SCUP–45, July 10–14 in Minneapolis, where you can network and converse with more than 1,000 of your peers and colleagues.
 What happens when "creative clutter" meets transparency in a new, elegant building? Robert Campbell reviews the new MIT Media Lab building at MIT. Frank Moss, the Media Lab’s director, puts it this way: “It will take time to regain the sense of mess and to repopulate with junk.’’It’s the classic marriage of form and content. The new building is Snow White and the Media Lab is Mad Max. Time will reveal how well the marriage works. That said, viewed simply and purely as a work of architecture, this is a wonderful building. You can think of it as an exercise in transparency. The Media Lab has long been famous for hiding itself in a building by I.M. Pei that was a nearly windowless box. The new building, which joins the Pei at one edge, is exactly the opposite. From outside, you can look all the way through it from one end to the other. It’s sheathed in shimmering glass and metal screens that allow about half the sunlight through to the interior. You feel that the building is temptingly veiled, not blanketed. NEW! Let us know what you think of this type of resource. Mini-poll below.
A quick look at our early morning sweep through the higher ed media on Monday, November 30, 2009. Our guess is that you'll especially like Today's Campus' new Campus Photos section and University Business' 35 Smart Building Ideas.
Your thoughts?
Labels: academic planning, campus planning, facilities planning, governance, leadership, resource and budget planning
Florida's Statewide Career University Is All Over the Map
An interesting, very brief interview with Belinda Keiser, Vice Chancellor of Keiser University, by Jeff Wendt of Today's Campus: Surprise our readers with your four most recent locations.
We have 100 bachelors students in Shanghai co-located with the Hong Kong Institute of Business and Shanghai Jiao Tong University. We have 50 students in the European Republic of Moldova, some of whom are pursuing MBAs. We also have 30 business degree students in Singapore. And, in Port St. Lucie, Florida we've just opened the Keiser University College of Golf. Labels: for-profits, Keiser University, leadership, student services, teaching and learning
Ask the Administrator: The Etiquette of Postmortems
Now SCUPers can connect on Facebook and on LinkedIn.
How useful is a critical look at a former CAO's successes and failures? It's a tricky situation. When someone leaves campus, it's easy to make her the scapegoat after the fact for all manner of things. But since she'll still be around, that won't be as easy. And that's probably just as well . . . A study a few years ago found that the average length of service for a chief academic officer at an American college is three years. That's astonishingly short, but it makes sense when you consider the multiple and conflicting demands of the position. For someone to last as long as yours did, she must have been good at something.
Labels: CAO, chief academic officer, human relations, leadership
Q&A With Bill Flores, President of the University of Houston, Downtown
Bill Flores is president of the University of Houston, Downtown, and formerly president of the Federal Reserve Bank as well as provost and executive vice president of New Mexico State University. He was recently named one of the 100 most influential Hispanic leaders in the US. Jefff Wendt of Today's Campus (formerly The Greentree Gazette) provides this brief interview with Flores: We are preparing tomorrow’s leaders, so we must continue to plan convenient schedules and online delivery methods that fit into modern lives. We will expand our offerings to serve a broader spectrum of the population. We expect to add more dual-credit offerings for high school juniors and seniors. We will serve more adults entering second and third careers. And we will continue to add degree programs that meet workforce demands in Houston. Labels: Bill Flores, leadership, presidents, University of Houston
Book: Out In Front: The College President as the Face of the Institution
 Active SCUP member Laurence V. Weill, president of Gordon College (GA), has recently edited a book of chapters written by himself and others about the many somewhat personal issues that arise for a college president involving the wider campus-area community. What does it mean to be the face that most of the community associates with the college or university? It's a must-read for checklists and advice on the pitfalls and promises of being such a public face - whether president or not. Labels: community, leadership, president, town and gown
7 Lessons From 3 Decades: The Emotional Dimension of Leadership
A perspective piece from a 26th-year president: "A multitude of decisions are made throughout the university—mostly outside the offices of the president and provost. By default the framework for most of those decisions is based on authority. The question too often asked is “who should make this decision,” rather than 'how should this decision be made."
"From my perspective the most important leadership task is to identify and retain men and women of talent, temperament and commitment. This task overshadows all others. In the words of a former colleague, Dero Downing, “Get good people and good things will happen.”
Read the full article here http://www.aascu.org/media/public_purpose/2009/09_0405leadershiplessons.htmLabels: leadership, managing change, strategy
The Department Chair: Leading the Charge to Build Student Character and Leaders
More Hearts and Minds at the Table
The author of this article for Business Officer, is also the author of a new NACUBO book titled, Collaborative Strategic Planning in Higher Education: One of the main reasons that strategic planning often fails to live up to its promise is the way it is conducted on campuses. It is the process that is the problem. Often, campus stakeholders don't feel connected to the planning activities and, therefore, aren't committed to implementation of the designated priorities. People feel that the plan is something done to them or for them but not with them. They do not believe that their ideas have been heard, because no real attempt was made to authentically solicit their ideas, concerns, or hopes. They were never given strategic information to review and think about or an opportunity to learn about the financial realities and the real implications of key decisions. Labels: engagement, leadership, stakeholders, strategic plannng
Let the Conversation Begin: How Do We Deal With a Rogue Trustee?
This Leadership Abstract from the League for Innovation by Terry O'Banion, is a prelude to his forthcoming new book, The Rogue Trustee: The Elephant In the Room. We're looking forward to reviewing it for SCUP's journal, Planning for Higher Education. Rogue trustees run roughshod over the norms and standards of behavior expected of public officials appointed or elected to office. They tend to trample over the ideas and cautions of the CEO, the trustee chair, and member trustees. They place their own interests over the interests of the college. They violate written and unwritten codes of conduct. They often make inappropriate alliances with faculty, staff, and other trustees. They recommend and support policies that are not in the best interests of the institution. They consume an inordinate amount of staff and meeting time. They know how to get attention, to appeal to the base elements in others, and to manipulate individuals and situations to their advantage. Most rogue trustees are quite bright and articulate; some are mentally unbalanced. They are sometimes loners, exiled from the herd, but they also create alliances with others to carry out their agenda. They are high maintenance. They tend to poison the culture of the college instead of helping to create a sense of community, collaboration, innovation, and common values. They become the catalyst for increased defensiveness, paranoia, subterfuge, and fear. In short, they cause enormous damage. The rogue trustee is the elephant in the room, creating an ever-widening circle of frustration and destruction for anything in its path. Labels: decision making, leadership, trustees
Can't We All Just Get Along?
Related: Related: A concurrent session at SCUP–44: Building the Plane in the Air: Changing a Campus Culture While Integrating Vision, Budget and Program Review.
We completely agree with the initial premiss of this article by Scott Jaschik in Inside Higher Ed: You know the stereotypes—perhaps even believe them. College administrators these days care only for the bottom line. Professors can't decide anything or ever endorse change. When professors become department chairs or deans, they cross over to the 'dark side,' and forget their old values and friends. . . . In various forms, these views of the 'other side' are hardly new. But several researchers [recently argued at the 2009 AERA conference] that the economic crisis facing higher education makes it particularly important for the various players to work well together . . . . The idea . . . is not to presume that the differences will vanish. There are bound to still be professors more deliberative than administrators might want—especially those administrators facing deadlines to cut budgets. . . . a more nuanced approach might yield strategies that move beyond the false dichotomy of, for example, making every budget cut today or waiting two years to come up with a plan. Labels: AERA, department chairs, integrated planning, leadership
Book Review: The Student Leadership Challenge
From the January–February–March 2009 issue of Planning for Higher Education, this "SCUP Links Blog" post provides an opportunity for you to share comments or additional resources/links about the review by SCUP office work-study student Clayton McPherson of the book, The Student Leadership Challenge. You can read the entire article here [LINK TO COME], in Planning for Higher Education. Labels: book, book review, leadership, learning, student leadership, student life
What There Is to Know; What we Know; and What 'They' Know About Higher Education
In "The Information Gap: Much Talk, Little Progress," Dennis P. Jones ends with a call to action: It's time to make the case for higher ed. Despite all the hue and cry about student learning since 2000, we have actually taken a step backward in gathering comparable state-level data. Most of the movement in the last eight years has focused on individual campuses and systems, through efforts such as the Collegiate Learning Assessment and the Voluntary System of Accountability. Perhaps the biggest step backward has been in the measurement of adult skills. The number of states participating in the National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) fell from 13 in 1992 to just six in 2003, and the 2003 data are still not available for all the participating states.
In just a few weeks, state legislatures will convene to face the biggest budget crisis in a generation. Unfortunately, they will have to make difficult decisions about priorities without the benefit of better information about the most urgent needs for getting more students to and through college at a price they can afford. This makes it more likely that we will see the usual responses — raising tuition, capping enrollment, cutting across-the-board — that will put states further behind in the race to grow a competitive work force.
We can fix this. It is time for every state — and the nation — to commit to getting the information needed to increase the size of our college-educated population, and to halt the worrisome slide of the United States relative to other advanced nations on higher education outcomes. Labels: accountability, assessment, leadership, policy
eBook: Letters to the Next President
Earlier this year, Joel Trachtenberg and Gerald B. Kauvar collected a number of letters to the next president. The first print run has been sold out, more are being printed, but even better—the entire volume is available as an ebook here. From the Introduction: "This volume of no-nonsense essays by strong and significant leaders—who collectively represent a great deal but not all of the diversity of American higher education—is published in the hope that America's next president and next generation of policy makers will pay attention and make the fundamental decisions required for our nation to retain its place of envy in the higher education pantheon. . . . What unifies these essays is the passion and clarity of vision and presentation. As a nation, we are fortunate these women and men have devoted their lives to our mutual enterprise." Labels: environmental scanning, leadership, policy, strategic planning
Red, White, Blue, and Green: The University of West Georgia
This is one in a series of "chapters" (PDF) about college and university best practices, written by presidents for the Presidential Perspectives.org website. In it, Beheruz N. Sethna, president, The University of West Georgia, writes about his campus' successes in sustainability achievements. His "recommendations for implementation" of any successful initiative at a university are: "First, Make it an institutional priority"; "Second: Create a plan of action to generate the conservation"; "Third: Present the implementation plan to the leadership of the institution"; "Fourth: Roll out the plan with the endorsement of the leadership"; "Fifth: Monitor the progress with regularly scheduled metric analysis": The title of this essay also emphasizes how the University of West Georgia (UWG) would not be able to realize its Green Initiative without the involvement of the entire campus. Add together, in approximately equal parts, the faculty, staff, students, alumni, and a large external community. Next, mix in undergraduate and graduate student research with faculty and staff research and continuous monitoring, assessment, and reporting. You begin to get an idea of the complexity of a Green Initiative that partners with a multitude of public entities.
The combination of academic research, staff training, and implementation of sustainable measures has made the Green Initiative and energy conservation programs an ongoing success story on the UWG campus. We have already received several best practice awards, and we have assisted in the dissemination of ideas that work. We stand ready to continue to do the same for other institutions. Labels: best practices, leadership, operational planning, sustainability
Higher Ed Presidents Write to the Presidential Candidates
A recent letter (PDF) to Barack Obama and John McCain from the presidents of the AACC, AAU, AASCU, NAICU, ACE, and NASULGC: Dear Senator McCain and Senator Obama:
America is a nation of unparalleled opportunity. The richness and diversity of our national fabric - by faith, by national origin, and by cultural traditions - are woven into a single national character. We are a people unified by a belief in collective ideals of economic opportunity, freedom of thought, protection of individual liberties, and commitment to advancing America's security and prosperity.
America's higher education system is a reflection of that same national character. We have the most diverse system in the world - from open-access community colleges that are the envy of other countries to the world's most highly regarded research universities. From trade schools that specialize in job training to colleges whose entire curriculum focuses on the Great Books. Unlike other nations, our system of higher education is open to all with the desire to grow and succeed - from students straight out of high school to older working adults looking to learn new skills.
As representatives of our higher education institutions, we wish to suggest several areas of consideration for strengthening higher education, preserving America's economic and national security, and ensuring that our citizens have full opportunity to succeed in a world undergoing vast and rapid change. Main points: 1. Solving the Access Problem, Together 2. Maintaining the Public Trust through Greater Transparency 3. Maintaining Our Competitive Edge - From Research to Job Training 4. Advancing International Education – Our Best Diplomatic Tool 5. Success Through a Proactive Partnership Labels: election, federal, government relations, leadership, policy
Rethinking Choices (After the Financial Crisis Has Hit)
Former GWU president Stephen Joel Trachtenberg is blogging for The Chronicle Review in its "Brainstorm: Lives of the Mind" blog. His latest post is about the financial situation "forcing campus constituencies to rethink their choices." From his perspective, "[a]ssumptions are being thrown out the door" (or will be soon). The administration. Strategic plans traditionally look ahead five to ten years, carefully laying out institutional goals and mission, putting building blocks in place, charting the course for the future. Every sound administrator expects to make mid-course adjustments, to tweak the strategic model, to respond to small bumps in the road. Very few, however, could have predicted the perfect storm: horrendous loses in endowments; the tightening of credit for capital projects; lack of liquidity available for short-term loans; possible reduction of personal and foundation philanthropic gifts; and the potential loss of student applicants.
This is the time for reinvention. As the president of the University of Arizona recently said, “We cannot achieve our aspirations with either our current funding or operational models.” How this is accomplished will depend on how quickly colleges and universities (and the rest of the world) sense that a stable floor has returned to the economy. If the markets continue to tumble, some decisions — and possible draconian ones — will need to be made quickly, and if the markets take a deep breath and appear to return to a calm, then decisions can be made with greater deliberation. To paraphrase the old education expression — here are the new 3-Rs for these troubled times: Reorganizing, Restructuring, and Reformatting how the business of higher education is accomplished. Labels: choices, financial crisis, leadership, strategic planning
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