Assessments The OFD administers three different types of faculty assessments for Rice. They are the Faculty Exit Survey, Faculty Climate Survey, and the FIF-Assessment of Evidence-Based Teaching at Rice. The OFD also analyzes student teaching evaluations. In addition, the OFD’s Faculty Advisory Committee gathers data across the campus and ensures “on-going assessment of multiple dimensions of faculty status” (Advisory Comm to OFD Charge, 2016, para. 1). According to Amborski (2017), the faculty exit survey helps the OFD gauge their shortcomings and gives them an idea of what they are doing well. “Exit interviews or surveys of departing faculty by disinterested parties…could provide data that help a campus diagnose its own weaknesses and …show more content…
Unfortunately, at times the most dedicated faculty may unintentionally neglect their families. Although their contributions advance the higher institution at which they work, their dedication could weaken family relationships, cause exhaustion or other negative health conditions. A 2014 study from Boise State University found, “on average, faculty participants reported working 61 hours per week – more than 50 percent over the traditional 40-hour work week” (Ziker, 2014, para. 21). An unhealthy work-life balance can also have a negative effect on faculty development planning and participation in development activities. Thankfully, many institutions recognize and reward devout faculty while also urging them to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Rice University (2011) “encourages employees regularly to use their [paid time off] in order to increase productivity, job satisfaction, work-life balance and overall retention” (p. …show more content…
In order for the entire campus to rely solely on the OFD for development activities, programs, and resources, is to first collaborate more with other departments and schools within the university. One faculty developer discovered “faculty development being created and led by a cross-disciplinary partnership lent credibility and fostered creativity” (Adams & Mix, 2014, p. 53). The School of Humanities still manages a majority of its own development workshops and programs. Building a relationship with that school and taking partial ownership of a few workshops could result in full-ownership after a few years. Providing most of the institution’s development programs will justify the OFD’s existence and demonstrate its purpose. Also, if the OFD is the primary source for faculty development opportunities, participation and general interest in the OFD will increase.
Conclusion
The Office of Faculty Development and Rice University delivers wonderful programs, resources, and workshops to faculty in every stage of development at Rice University. Their focus on diversity and mentorship has allowed the OFD to create a positive reputation for itself. Although the OFD has only existed for about five years, its programs have a lasting, positive effect on the campus. The OFD’s resources empower faculty and successfully fills a void on campus. In time, the OFD plans to increase its presence and dependability
The need for support and mentorship becomes even more crucial for faculty employed at small, private institutions, because oftentimes the duties of the professoriate are coupled with advising obligations, administrative assignments or committee leadership. To complicate matters further, the smaller faculty usually contributes to a lack of diversity among its members (Schnell, 1992), thus leaving a significant gap in possible mentors for women faculty in search of gender-matches to confide in as they learn the nuances within the academe.
In addition to connecting with all factors, the plan will include the leader becoming the change agent and motivating the masses together (Fullan, 2011). The Dean of Academic Affairs will “exemplify the curiosity, inquiry skills, and scholarly competencies need to investigate an idea and transform it into meaningful action” (Drexel University EdD Keystone 5, 2017). The plan will met be with resistance because so many at
The two Yale university leaders added that they “are committed to investing the significant funding and human capital that will be necessary to make this initiative a success.” But they noted that “increasing the excellence and diversity of our faculty will take more than resources; it will require the dedication and efforts of colleagues from across the university. You, the faculty of today, are our crucial partners in shaping the faculty of tomorrow. We look forward to working with you toward this important
Those who develop culturally responsive faculty development programs should examine the foundational principles upon which they are built; they will demonstrate the level of commitment to developing a cadre of culturally responsive educators. Any program, curriculum or agenda that does not have at its core the intention of creating an equitable society for everyone is a tool to maintain hegemonic practices (Gorski, 2008). While there is no set model or format for culturally responsive faculty development, there are certain traits that should be evident from such a program.
“The national program needs to focus on promoting invested faculty development at the local level for day to day support.”
38). Since the Dean has good collaboration skills In addition to connecting with all factors, the plan will include the leader becoming the change agent and motivating the masses together (Fullan, 2011). The Dean of Academic Affairs will “exemplify the curiosity, inquiry skills, and scholarly competencies need to investigate an idea and transform it into meaningful action” (Drexel University EdD Keystone 5, 2017).
Data serves as a tangible evidence source of a lack of diversity. “In a community that is 59% Hispanic, the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2015), report reveals over 82% of the faculty and staff at FPU are white. The gap in the number of diverse faculty, inadequate faculty engagement, and a disjointed approach to diversity across the school are all contributing factors to the current issue of diversity” (Cochran, 2015).
All institutions, regardless of which sector they perform in, find themselves exploring the evolution of their model on a more frequent basis. Cultural institutions like The Delaware Contemporary have not only embraced the move away from an outdated model, but also see the potential creative research within the rate of refresh in the continued evolution. The University of Delaware continues to grow and push the boundaries of its model, as well. Faculty, students and staff at the University embrace an evolving model that offers increased accessibility to an expanding academic system motivated by knowledge production and research, as illustrated in Michael M. Crow’s, “Models for the New American Research University”. With a partnership
The United States is commonly known as “No-Vacation Nation” (Thompson, 2012) because Americans typically prioritize work over studies and family. (1)Although people in America take fewer vacations than any nation in the world, socioeconomics may be a reason for why employees focus more on work than research and relationships in the American culture. "There is simply no evidence that working people to death gives you a competitive advantage" (Pawlowski, 2011). (2)As a citizen of the United States and one who has often fallen prey to these ideals, the trend to overwork has been an affliction to overcome. Family and scholarly efforts have been sacrificed, but over the past year or two, I have made a conscious effort to alter my “live to work”
Texas Tech is a large University located in Lubbock Texas and is home to many faculty members. Because it is so big we, decided that focusing on one college, the college for human sciences, for the semester is the best way to ensure we give our best work out there, in hopes of in the future being able to help other colleges at Texas Tech University. The college of Human Sciences has a total of one hundred and twenty-eight faculty members according the fall 2015 faculty census on the Texas Tech website (Faculty Head Count). They also break this number down by ethnicity. There majority of the faculty population is White-Non-Hispanic people accounting for ninety-nine out of the one-hundred twenty-eight people (Faculty Head Count). The least was Black-Non-Hispanic, accounting for only two (Faculty Head Count). We hope to get as many ethnicities to participate in this program to be able to study trends in the specific ethnicity and then to compare and contrast with others (Faculty Head Count).
In the last 30 years there is significantly more Hispanic, Asian, and African American students enrolling in college. (US Dept. of Education) With the ever-changing demographical makeup, the need for inclusive teaching practices is evident. Preito (2011), declares the necessity for a scale in order to measure how well professors are integrating cultural competence into the classroom, creating the Multicultural Teaching Competencies Inventory as a feedback tool. While previous literature on multicultural professors' has been studied, conclusions focused on how students' were evaluating with regards to ethnicity of the professor. (Lee, 2010; Bavishi, Hebl, & Madera, 2010) Though focusing on students perceptions of their professors ethnicity remains
A study was conducted on the campus of a major university, in which there were approximately nine hundred participants who were full-time faculty members. Questionnaires were hand-delivered to the head secretary of each department on campus, with the request to put one in the mailbox of each full-time faculty member. A total of 263 faculty members responded to the survey. The demographic breakdown for the sample was compared with that reported for the university (Ghorpade & Lackritz, 2011).
Thirty-eight percent of Americans report some tension between their work and home lives. Today’s highly publicized work/life balance conflicts are multiple, and their nature differs significantly depending on the jobs individuals have and on their family situations. Tensions between work and family life clearly have implications for the well-being of individuals and their children and ramifications for society in general. Yet because the personal needs, desires, motivations, and economic circumstances of Americans are so varied, there appears to be no single way to resolve these tensions, no universal best practices with regard to work/life balance. For example,
The Houston R-I School District needs to focus on teacher quality. We need to be actively pursuing teachers with diverse backgrounds that can contribute to our goal of becoming a school with a pluralistic mindset. It is important that we look outside of our community for potential employees that can bring a unique and diverse perspective to our school.
· Balance - "Management's recognition of the importance of personal and family life remains the top driver of employee loyalty. Employees who spend a moderate amount of time each week attending to personal matters while at work have a higher level of commitment to their employer than those who spend no time." (America @ Work 1999," Aon Consulting, Chicago, Illinois; 312.701.4844) Employers who provide a work/life/family balance