Filter & Sort
In Defense of Incrementalism
Higher ed needs to change – but if college leaders value “nimbleness” over thoughtful deliberation, they will not serve their institutions well, writes Terry Brown.
Free Speech Limited for HR Official
Appeals court says University of Toledo had right to fire human resources director for op-ed questioning legitimacy of gay rights.
Corporate Governance, Shared Governance, and Higher Ed
The only thing scarier than higher education with administrators is higher education without them. Last week, Lee Skallerup Bessette and Paul Fain both had thought-provoking pieces in IHE about StraighterLine and the possibility of “freelance” higher education.
The Simple Power of Finding Stuff Out
Like many academic librarians, a major piece of my job is helping students find their way around information they might use for course assignments. This fall I met a few times with a class full of smart, curious first year students who were quick to grasp their course content, quick to pick up on ways of finding out more, quick to follow leads into odd corners of the library, and wonderfully articulate when asked to reflect on what they observed. But when asked to write a modest paper using at least one primary and one secondary source, they seemed suddenly insecure and anxious.
GradHacker Gift Guide: Professional
In case you're still doing your holiday shopping or, like many of us grad students, haven't even thought about it yet, here is part one of our handy gift guide for graduate students. Graduate students can be difficult to shop for- often our needs can be different and we don't have too much time to make extensive lists.
"Heads In Beds" and Higher Ed
Hotels share some things in common with higher ed. They are both bundled businesses, combining a range of functions and services at one location. They are both high fixed cost industries, where the economics only work if the high costs of the physical structures and staffing expenses must be distributed across many customers. They both offer differentiated services by price, with both luxury and no-frills brands competing in the same marketplace.
Mothering at Mid-Career: Cards Unsent, Presents Unopened
I spent the weekend thinking about Christmas cards, and Christmas presents. Not the ones that I have not yet bought, or sent, but ones that were postmarked Newtown last week, or purchased in Danbury a week or two ago, already wrapped and ready to be put under a Christmas tree. Cards with pictures of children on them, children who will not see the Christmas the cards celebrate; children who will not open the gifts purchased for them. I cannot think about these gifts, these cards. I cannot imagine the grief of the families.