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Building Strong Geoscience Departments Session T1 SEGSA – 2007 Geoff Feiss College of W&M

This session explores the importance of building strong geoscience departments in the current era of change and tight budgets. It discusses the lessons learned from past economic and societal challenges and offers insights on how departments can thrive and succeed amidst change.

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Building Strong Geoscience Departments Session T1 SEGSA – 2007 Geoff Feiss College of W&M

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  1. Building Strong Geoscience DepartmentsSession T1SEGSA – 2007Geoff FeissCollege of W&M

  2. PLAN • Why should we worry? • What have we learned? • What should we do looking forward? Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  3. The Past is the Key to the Present This is an era of accelerated change on campus. In the current atmosphere of tight budgets and new attitudes, nearly all traditional academic departments are asked to evaluate their course offerings… John Dennison, 1972

  4. 30-year reality check • 1973: Arab Oil embargo starts “stagflation” of early 70s • 1979-82: post-70’s inflation recession • 1988-92: Stock market decline; recession • Early 2000s: Dotcom bubble and 9/11 recession • 2010-12: ??? Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  5. Public sector budget priorities • Transportation & infrastructure • Health care (Medicare/Medicaid) • Mental health • PreK-12 education • Public safety • Environment and recreation • Higher Education Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  6. Increasingly, higher administration budgeting is a matter of: Who thrives? Who survives? Who dies? Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  7. The terms of engagement: • You cannot hide • The game is often fixed • There are some really bad threat responses • Budget cutting is never easy, always fraught, and often personal Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  8. Lessons learned: The Winners There are 2 kinds: • Top-ranked, mission essential, high enrollment programs • Those who have it together Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  9. Characteristics of “together” programs: • Manage change • Congenial and collaborative • Student-centered • Mentor young faculty and nurture staff • Strong enrollments • Play nice & by the rules • Work hard; have fun; don’t whine • Have a sense of mission & own it • Can validate their excellence and potential • Don’t take things personally Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  10. Losers can be: • Without a clear vision • Alienated • Too quaint • Entitled • Paranoid • Disunited and in disarray • Clueless • Victims of bad luck Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  11. The Key To Success LEARN TO CHANGE Manage it Better yet: embrace it; foster it: control it; and lead it Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  12. To succeed in change: • Lose battles, win the war • Share credit • Be active, not passive • Define the metrics of success • Find allies • Put students at the center • Don’t overanalyze Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

  13. You better hope that there is intelligent life in your department, because there's bugger-all in senior administration – Apologies to Eric Idle Feiss/SEGSA T1 2007

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