Chairing Academic Departments Traditional and Emerging Expectations

The department chair position has changed dramatically in recent years. What was largely a management function accompanied by representation responsibilities and the usual unit evolution in the form of occasional new courses and faculty replacement has been altered by the multiple aspects of the accountability movement in the 1990s. Much of the old work and traditional responsibilities remain for the 21st–century chair, but they are now accompanied by emerging challenges requiring new skills. This book provides new, existing, and potential department chairs with some historical perspectives and practical suggestions as they face a higher education enterprise that is undergoing significant changes from past practice. Contents Include: The Chair: Then, Now, and Soon to Be Characteristics of Effective Chairs Remaining Professionally Viable Quality Assurance Staying Legal Communication Working With Faculty, Dean, and Other Administrators Student Interactions Staffing the Department Guiding Faculty Careers Fiscal Constraints Strategic Planning The Chair as Entrepreneur Preparing to Lead Change Chair Selection and Development Exiting the Chair Position