Faculty Trends and Issues

The time is past for a "one size fits all" approach to faculty. If American colleges and universities are to remain strong, they must commit to making academic work financially viable and attractive to the next generation of scholars.
Context
In an issue paper released earlier this month by the U.S. Secretary of Education’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education, Robert C. Dickeson offered harsh criticism of “the unique culture and extraordinary power of the faculty” in higher education. The systems of tenure and shared governance, he argued, run counter to sound business practices and contribute substantially to rising college costs.

The same week, Michael F. Middaugh, director of the National Study of Instructional Costs and Productivity, presented a different picture at the annual meeting of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. “Faculty instruction has been managed and managed well. It’s the other stuff that’s killing us.”

For their part, four-year college presidents weighed in last fall in a Chronicle of Higher Education survey. While inadequate faculty salaries ranked highest on their list of faculty concerns, a majority of presidents surveyed also foresee change in the tenure system.

Because of the unique characteristics of the academy, namely, its labor-intensive nature and its tradition of shared governance, faculty issues are always a matter of great interest and high emotion. As such, it is important for campus and system leaders to understand current faculty trends and their implications.