This book examines tensions and challenges in the professional lives and identities of contemporary academics. Drawing on extensive interviews conducted over seven years with academics in the United States and the United Kingdom, the authors analyze the experiences of four types of academics as they respond and adjust to the demands of…

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, universities around the globe have taken numerous extraordinary measures and implemented many changes to their strategic, operational, and academic activities. Currently, there is a transformation taking place from the emergency decision-making in the early stages of the pandemic towards reflection and…

Assembly Bill 705 (AB 705) sought to increase successful completion of transfer-level math and English courses by addressing systemic problems in traditional placement policies and curricular structures. The law requires colleges to maximize the probability that students who enroll in credit English as a second language (ESL) courses complete…

These technical appendices are for the report, "English as a Second Language at California's Community Colleges: An Early Examination of AB 705 Reforms." Assembly Bill 705 (AB 705 Irwin) sought to increase successful completion of transfer-level math and English courses by addressing systemic problems in traditional placement policies…

Transitioning Learners to Calculus in Community Colleges (TLC3) is a research project aimed at transforming institutional approaches to matriculating underrepresented racial minority (URM) students into and through Calculus II in the nation's 1,023 public associate degree-granting institutions (community colleges). The broader goal of the TLC3…

Despite the movement in dentistry toward a system of professional peer review, dental educators appear highly resistant to evaluation by their colleagues. The University of Maryland Dental School has a comprehensive evaluation system involving evaluation of courses and instruction by students, program evaluations by individual departments, formal…

An in-depth study of the problems and achievements of 100 new college teachers is reported and discussed, covering teacher training and experience; situational factors found to affect their teaching; the varying quality of performance; and recommendations for the teachers, departments hiring them, graduate students, and graduate departments. (MSE)

Statistics on the nature of academic physiology departments are provided. Included are salaries by number of years, rank, and region, numbers of faculty members, and numbers of pre- and postdoctoral trainees in process and completing degrees in the year 1989. (CW)

Papers presented at a symposium commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Department of Rural Sociology of the University of Wisconsin-Madison are collected in this volume. The first four papers--by Olaf Larson, Edward Moe, Daryl Hobbs, and Robert Gard--discuss the department's history, emphasizing the contributions of outstanding…

A discussion of college faculty cultures and climates explains both conceptual notions and how institutional researchers, deans, and department heads can assess and understand them. It is proposed that this information can be useful to administrators committed to understanding, supporting, and leading the faculty of their units. (Author/MSE)

A survey of department heads in 101 research and doctorate-granting universities investigated career movements before becoming the chair, length of tenure, first and second career moves of their predecessors in the chair, and the relationship of variables such as discipline, department size, age, gender, hiring practices, and previous…

A survey was conducted of 114 (a 62.6% response rate) academic deans of predominantly IIA institutions (Carnegie Classification) to gather information concerning the equitable and fair treatment of department heads at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. The survey revealed that the duties of department heads included teaching/research;…

A process of planned change is proposed for redefining college faculty work. Legitimate faculty work is defined in broad terms, and information sources and methods for collecting information to support redefinition are identified. The final step in the redefinition process is the development of new mission statements for the institution and its…

This paper presents the findings of a committee at the University of Maryland (College Park) charged with studying the effectiveness of programs on campus aimed at achieving higher rates of participation and success for black faculty. Fourteen sections present results of the committee's survey and interviews, examination of specific issues, and…

This study examined the relationship between organizational form and faculty behavior for biotechnology faculty in research universities. In particular the study looked at the perceptions and role of nondepartmental organized research units as compared to the more traditional university structures of discipline rank, tenure status,and…