How to Chair a Department

A handbook for chairing a department, providing practical advice and principles for effective leadership. Over the course of a typical academic career, most faculty will serve as chair, yet few receive training. Kevin Dettmar, based on his dozen years of chairing departments, offers invaluable advice on hiring faculty, mentoring, managing resources, meeting student needs, dealing with stress, connecting the department to the university, overseeing curricula, maintaining a scholarly or creative profile, and preparing for career moves.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 200 pages
Publication date: 15 November 2022
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press

Over the course of a typical academic career, most faculty members will serve at least one term as chair of a department. It is a leadership and service role that is at the very heart of faculty satisfaction and student success, yet few receive any training on how to do the job.

How to Chair a Department is a practical, accessible handbook for new and prospective chairs, providing both principles and practices for effective departmental leadership. Based on his dozen years of chairing departments, Kevin Dettmar provides invaluable advice on:

• Hiring tenure-track and visiting faculty
• Mentoring faculty colleagues at every stage of their careers
• Working with staff and other departmental administrators
• Managing department resources and budgets
• Meeting the needs of students
• Dealing with stress and conflict
• Connecting the department to the larger university or college as a whole
• Overseeing the department's curricula
• Maintaining a scholarly or creative profile
• Preparing for career moves after chairing a department

How to Chair a Department demystifies this important faculty position and argues that the role of chair, though sometimes seen as a burden, can prove to be a genuine opportunity for personal and professional growth.

Weight: 204g
Dimension: 203 x 127 x 13 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781421445236