This article examines the interconnected phenomena of recruitment, retention, and utilization of faculty at research universities, with special emphasis on the changing mix of tenure track and contingent (i.e., fixed term) faculty members. The authors argue, based upon both national data and detailed information from a particular institution, that…

In October 2010, the University of Southern California School of Social Work entered the online education environment with the launch of the first national web-based MSW program. After an initial enrollment of 80 students, in just 3 years this state-of-the-art MSW, offered in a technology-advanced synchronous and asynchronous format, has generated…

This dissertation examines the relationship of African American male undergraduate students from the context of one academic institution in the southwest border region of the United States. It explores the aspect of a sense of belonging on this particular university campus. The multiple mixed simultaneous study was conducted through the…

With a house languishing in the real-estate doldrums of southwestern Ohio, Edward F. Leonard III and his family have lived apart since he took over as president of Bethany College, in Kansas, nearly a year ago. Their situation is like that of many faculty members and administrators frustrated by housing prices across the country. Existing-home…

This volume contains the following papers: (1) Preparing to Hire the Best in the Perfect Storm (John P. Murray); (2) New Faculty Issues: Fitting In and Figuring It Out (Pamela L. Eddy); (3) An Approach to a Faculty Professional Development Seminar (Mary Bendickson and Karen Griffin); (4) Faculty Issues in Rural Community Colleges (Brent D. Cejda);…

A few years ago, in "Student Success in College (SSiC)," the authors profiled twenty colleges and universities that were unusually effective in fostering student engagement and success, defined as better-than-predicted scores on the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and better-than-predicted graduation rates. These schools are…

New administrative offices for diversity are popping up at universities around the country, and one can usually count on them to cast minority-recruiting efforts in a favorable light. There is still, however, a role for the old-school rabble-rousers, as a new report from a faculty committee at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor makes clear.…

The University of Pennsylvania places great emphasis on talent management, specifically on attracting and retaining top-notch people. One way it accomplishes this is by offering several avenues by which its employees can further their careers. Penn's large, decentralized structure provides significant opportunities for career growth; however,…

As a result of globalization, universities in some Asian countries now require their faculty members, by way of carrot or stick, to research and publish internationally. In tenure, promotion, contract renewal and faculty recruitment exercises, rate of publication in reputed journals based in the US and the UK has become a major criterion of…

The economic downturn that began in the United States in 2008 has influenced higher education in similar ways to retrenchment in the early 1970s. Institutional budget constraints have expedited long-term declines in the number of full-time, tenure track faculty positions available in many academic disciplines, especially the humanities. This…

Faculty are the bedrock of any university and they play a central role in all facets of academic life. However, despite impressive educational credentials, new faculty do not arrive with all the knowledge and experience necessary to advance in their new setting. This paper describes the use of a formal mentoring program as a powerful vehicle for…

This study seeks to better understand why faculty accept or resist seeking academic leadership positions such as dean or director, associate dean, or department chair. It seeks to improve understanding of the attitudes faculty hold about administration, the barriers they see to moving into administrative roles, and the reasons some choose an…

When search consultants, like the author, are invited to propose their services in support of a college or university seeking new leadership, they are generally asked a fairly standard set of questions. But there is one question that they find among the most difficult to answer: How do they check a candidate's references to ensure that they know…

When it comes to building a top-notch faculty, racing to land prominent scholars is only half the battle for colleges. The other half: Fighting off poachers intent on swiping the college's existing talented mid-career professors. At Cornell University, a $35-million gift announced by officials in late September will give the institution an edge in…

Through a comprehensive literature review, this article identifies and discusses barriers to recruitment and retention of faculty of color. Marginalization, racism and sexism manifested as unintended barriers are presented as a few of the barriers faculty of color face in successfully navigating the tenure process. Informed by this literature…