A week or so ago I published a piece in Inside Higher Ed about bridging the divide in higher education that too-often separates the administration from the faculty. It prompted some lively discussion. I appreciate those of you who engaged with my argument and offer the following as things I learned from your feedback.
* Experiences vary: One thing that the response to my essay taught me is that experiences vary widely. I would not have necessarily characterized the relationship between faculty and administration at my university as good, but I have learned that it certainly isn’t as difficult as it is elsewhere.
* Point taken: Several of you called me out for describing my colleague’s move from faculty to administration as a “promotion” since that contributed to the very divide that I was railing against. You are absolutely right. And such a description is part of the problem. I will think and write differently about that as a consequence–thank you! I need to avoid characterizing, and thus valuing, administrative work as something “above” the work that faculty do.
* There are administrators and there are administrators. What do we mean when we say “administration”? The responses to my piece would suggest that among faculty the word conjures up images of overpaid and ineffective presidents, vice presidents, deans and others in the upper echelons of administration. My own definition is a bit more all-encompassing and includes individuals who occupy more modest, but nonetheless administrative, roles at the university–associate deans, directors, and department chairs, for example. It is often these folks that I think of (though not exclusively) when I think of talented, dedicated colleagues who are not deserving of faculty antipathy. So we need to be careful that we don’t paint “administration” with too broad a brush.
Which brings me to my next point.
* Bad actors: I resisted the urge to respond to each comment that trashed the bad behavior of a particular administrator or administration with a counterpoint story about the bad behavior of faculty. I resisted, because that’s NOT THE POINT. You’re mad because an administrator pushed through a bad policy without adequate faculty governance? I’m mad at the tenured faculty member who never answers student emails and reads aloud from her textbook as a substitute for holding class. Both of these individuals are outliers. They are not the sole face of either the administration or the faculty.
Now, I will acknowledge that my analogy breaks down in the face of the power differential that often separates administrators from faculty.
Which brings me to my next point.
* Cultural v. structural: Admittedly, what I was arguing for was a change in the culture that often divides faculty from the administration. But as many of you pointed out, there are often structures that mitigate against that. On campuses without a strong tradition and culture of faculty governance it may be virtually impossible to work with the administration. If the administration controls large swaths of the decision-making process and wields that power without input from faculty, small wonder that faculty might be inclined to view them in a negative light. I don’t think this means that bridging the faculty-admin divide is impossible on campuses such as these, but it will face different and harder challenges.
Which brings me to my next point.
* Growing administrators: If your campus is plagued by a toxic environment that divides the faculty from the administration, then perhaps you need to think about moving some of those faculty (or yourself!) into the ranks of administration. Many of you lamented the fact that some of the most troublesome administrators come from outside the institution and don’t stick around very long. I agree that this creates disruption and distrust. One remedy is to encourage talented and dedicated faculty (and again, maybe YOU are one of these faculty) to consider moving into these positions. The faculty perspective, institutional memory, and commitment to the institution that these individuals bring to the table could go a long way to creating better relations between the administration and faculty.
If I learned nothing else from the comments on my essay, it’s that the relationship between faculty and administration is fraught and often outright contentious on most campuses. But I remain resolute in my insistence that there are things we can do to change that. I welcome your continued thoughts and suggestions.
Tales Told Out of School 