Some thoughts on: The Department Head September 2012

1. Some thoughts on:The Department HeadSeptember 2012 Andrew C. Hansen

2. Framing the conversation • President: Laramie Youth Baseball • Founder: FireholeComposites (www.firehole.com) • Presidential Faculty Fellow (2 years) • ACE Fellow: Chico State Office of the President • Department Head of CPE

3. Caveats • Departments are inherently unique • Traditions and culture • Vastly different resources • Vastly different resource needs • Different objectives • Large service loads • Some comments apply to any department, others are very specific to my experiences • All are a reflection of my own thoughts and may be the subject of debate

4. “The department keeper”vsIntangible aspects of the job

5. The department keeper • Staffing courses • Addressing faculty needs • Addressing student complaints • Academic dishonesty Handling the daily churn

6. The department keeper (cont’d) • Tenure and promotion • Evaluation of teaching • Fiscal matters • Annual reports—assessment • Accreditation All are necessities but is that all there is to look forward to?

7. Course Staffing • Good conversation is essential (more on this later) • Develop breadth of faculty teaching • Develop alternate pathways for students • Use GAs appropriately • Teaching responsibility • Sharing GA resources across the campus

8. Academic Dishonesty • Know the process and follow the regulations • Unireg 6-802 • Inform the appropriate contact in the Dean’s Office • Lawsuits happen! • Process is critical

9. Fiscal Matters • Great accountant • Plan the support budget for the entire year and review it monthly • Routine costs (communications, copying) • Faculty development • Special events (advisory boards & retreats) • Faculty searches (travel, start-up) • Maintain close ties with the college business manager • Be prepared for unusual and unforeseen requests It may be easier to get in a financial bind than you think!

10. Intangible aspects Potentially the most challenging but also the gratifying side of the job! • The softer side • Personal interactions (both positive and negative)

11. Intangible aspects • Creating a vision and moving the department forward • Friend raising: development • Promoting a positive internal environment • Promoting a positive external image

12. Intangible aspects (cont’d) • The faculty search process • Creating a student-centered culture • The recalcitrant full professor

13. Creating a vision and moving the department forward • Set goals & announce them! • Intangible value oriented (articulating the mission) • Very specific & achievable • Revisit them annually in a “state of the department” • Identify strengths and weakness • Promote your strengths—internally and externally • Work on your weaknesses (internally) • A visionary realist—see horizon, meet bottom line

14. Creating a vision and moving the department forward • Off campus retreat (perhaps overnight) • Every two years • Creative bold thinking • Faculty buy-in and engagement • Finding common ground (shared vision) • Curriculum development • Respect the traditions of the past while seeking new directions • You will accomplish more in one retreat than in an entire year of faculty meetings!

15. Friend Raising: Development • CASE: Development for Deans • Take the time to network with alums (reach out!) • People want to become involved and give back • Annual fund (90% of all major donors start by giving to the annual fund) • Personal thank you notes for every gift of $100 or more • Engage student organizations with industry and alums • Campus invitations • Travel is a very good thing • Use advisory boards for corporate connections • It’s all about relationship building

16. Promoting a positive internal environment • Advocate • Department • Faculty & Staff (Please stop by for a visit!) • Students People are the department’s most prized resource • Faculty & staff • Assist them whenever possible (you want them to succeed!) • Nominate them for awards (real time & effort) • Visit with your faculty regularly (you cannot over communicate) • LISTEN -empathy is a powerful ally

17. Promoting a positive internal environment • Optimize the environment for success • Space issues • Teaching issues • Relationships among colleagues • Be attentive to graduate student issues • Create a truly positive outlook for the department and communicate that message regularly • Cultivated a shared vision

18. Promoting a positive external image • External • College • University • State • Nation • World • University engagement • Facilities planning • Committee work • Faculty senate special committees

19. Promoting a positive external image • State and National Engagement • Reach out to local and state organizations ( A-Z) • Professional organizations • Corporate interactions (invitations to campus) • Advisory boards can be a powerful asset • Employment • Resources • Voice • Relationship building is an essential part of the enterprise!

20. Advice for faculty:Engage, engage, engage. • Engagement is service of no professional value? or • Engagement can be shameless self-promotion ! • Where/who? • Department • College • University* • State* • National

21. The Faculty Search Process • Start early and retain the momentum • Interviews finished in December • First offers out in January • Utilize the search committee—they were chosen for a reason • Actively engage the candidates • Move the search along • If they like UW and the Department, they will come • Start-up packages • An early start is critical—it takes time • Engage the campus (College, Research, AA, INBRE, EPSCoR, etc.)

22. Creating a student-centered culture • Staffing of courses • Develop options for the students • Make advising a point of emphasis • One of the most important jobs we do and tremendously undervalued • Transfer students need particular attention • USP needs to be traversed • Highly personalized attention is a powerful asset to student attitudes When a student leaves…”are they pleased they attended UW?”

23. The recalcitrant full professor • Above it all • Has it his/her way for quite some time • Teaches his/her courses only • Angry at UW, college, department • You? Perhaps your greatest challenge!

24. Potential Strategies • Do not take him/her on directly—you will likely lose • Begin with conversation—seek buy-in—listen carefully • If all else fails, marginalize his/her influence • Develop a deep respect among your more open minded colleagues (this takes time!—more on this later) • Do not place them in valued committee roles—especially search committees! • Ensure consistent resource allocations • Alter expected teaching patterns • Work closely with younger faculty re T & P

25. Closing thoughts:Power versus influence • There is no power in university administration! • You do have influence • The degree of influence depends on the level of respect and appreciation your colleagues have for you. • Gaining respect and appreciation is very hard work—it also takes time • Influence is far more desirable than absolute power

26. Closing thoughts:Maintain Humility • The footprints you left on the beach yesterday (along side those of a bear) have already been washed away • Reflections of Karen Halbersleben, President Northland College on her summer on the Apostle Islands, Michigan

28. Chemical & Petroleum Engineering:2010-11 Andrew C. Hansen

29. Department Strength The ability to become the flagship department in the College and a premier department of the University of Wyoming—and beyond. GOAL We have already come a long way!

30. Benchmarks

33. 316 students as of 24 August 2010 ! (Compared with 100 in 2004)

35. New CPE Faculty Joseph Henry Holles, Associate Professor • Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, 2000, University of Virginia; Post-doc. Caltech • M.E. Chemical Engineering, 1998, University of Virginia • B.S. Chemical Engineering, 1990, Iowa State University • Expertise: Catalysis in chemical & energy engineering, materials characterization

36. New CPE Faculty • John Oakey, Assistant Professor • B.S. in Chemical Engineering, Penn State University • Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Colorado School of Mines • Ph.D. thesis work related to the development of optically-integrated colloid-based microfluidic devices, and led to a startup company founded to commercialize this technology. • Performed post doctoral research at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School where he developed diagnostic and therapeutic applications for micro-fluidic devices. • Expertise: microfluidic technology for high speed cellular analysis re. inexpensive diagnostic devices for improving health care access in rural or resource-poor settings.

37. New CPE Faculty Dr. Katie (Dongmei) Li (Adjunct Faculty) • B.S. , Chemical Engineering, Shandong University (formerly Shandong University of Technology) in China • M.S., Chemical Engineering from Tianjin University • Ph.D., Chemical and Biological Engineering, Univ. of Colorado, Boulder  • Projects: fundamental modeling of polymeric membrane formation processes; fuel cell-related designs and industrial applications for various polymeric membranes and thin films, including hydrogen sensors and biomedical devices, especially glucose sensors. • Expertise: membranes for fuel cell and clean coal technology applications, and biocompatibility of implantable biosensors.

38. Accomplishments & Goals

39. CPE Accomplishments/Goals • Safety • MSDS sheets located within all labs and clearly marked • Improved signage per Halliburton and Shell review • GA offices in labs (egress issues) • Further discussions on our proposed name change • Department of Energy, Chemical, and Biological Engineering

40. CPE Accomplishments/Goals • Laboratory and facility development • Completion of the EncanaICSD lab • Conversion of Rm 4017 to a biological/chemical engineering lab • Conversion of 4052 to the BP Rock and Fluids Teaching Lab • Acquiring Rm 4054 and converting to a premier student lab • Multiple dominoe effects in other labs

41. Encana ISDC (Retreat) • Expand course offerings (curricular development) • Expand faculty usage • Begin documented usage of Halliburton and Schlumberger software

43. Developing the BP Lab • Move current teaching lab from 4018 to 4052 • Equipment purchases • Freeing up of 4018

44. Stimulus Funding for Rm 4052

45. Developing Rm 4054 as a premier student study center • GA offices • Undergraduate computer lab and study area

47. Developing Rm 4017 as a chemical/biological student research and teaching lab • Stimulus funding !

48. Stimulus Funding!

49. CPE Accomplishments/Goals (cont’d) • Graduate Education (Retreat) • A core Pete and Che curriculum • Recruiting of graduate students • Advancing our natural gas initiatives (Retreat) • Adding two courses for Spring 2011 (More on this later) • Formalizing plans for new lab developments in an Engineering Research Center

50. CPE Accomplishments/Goals (cont’d) • Development of the Drilling Fluids Lab • Acquiring equipment • Expansion of the lab (doubling in size) • Acquisition of a drilling simulator • Development opportunities ($500-$700K) • Space issues • Initialize a planning team for the Unit Ops lab • Formalizing budget (~$500 K) • Visit to other institutions • Preliminary plan