I have yet to have an administrator help me grade student papers when asked ;-)
I don't have anything against helping with the success of "my" school; but I would rather spend time helping students in my classes, doing my scholarly work or reading to become a better professor. Seems like the administrations at many schools find it appropriate to keep dumping responsibilities on faculty (and other "staff") when they appear to be faltering with their administrative duties (ouch!). I also get a little annoyed when "consultants" are paid loads of money for services rendered (and their time and professional expertise); yet faculty often seem to be asked to provide services and "do time" without adequate compensation. I don't want to come across as non-helpful. I actually love being part of "prospective student days" here at UC. But there is a bit of potential "slide" down the slippery slope about which some healthy concern might be appropriate. -S ======================================================== Steven M. Specht, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology Department of Psychology Utica College Utica, NY 13502 (315) 792-3171 monkeybrain-collagist.blogspot.com "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." Martin Luther King Jr. On Mar 21, 2011, at 3:59 PM, Michael Smith wrote: > Hmmmm. > > Did faculty really go to school for umpteen years in order to be a recruiter? > > Would administration expect a distinguished Harvard law professor to > be calling students and recruiting? > > Perhaps we are not all distinguished Harvard law professors, but does > that mean we should be given less respect? > > --Mike > > On Mon, Mar 21, 2011 at 5:31 AM, Helweg-Larsen, Marie > <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> >> Service obligations are always a slippery slope. The administration would >> like you (us) to do more and faculty would (generally in my experience) like >> to do less. I think that is a generally tension that can be handled (better >> or worse) by asking for volunteers, spreading the work across departments >> and faculty within the departments, giving some of it to the chair (e.g., >> answering questions about the program, meeting with students), and paying >> people (our faculty who advice students over the summer are faculty who are >> paid and who volunteered). >> >> >> >> I think the anonymous poster was asking whether there was something >> fundamentally wrong or different about this type of service (as opposed to >> all the millions of others small and big service activities faculty do). >> >> >> >> Marie >> >> >> >> **************************************************** >> Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D. >> Associate Professor of Psychology >> Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS), +45 2065 1360 >> >> Dickinson College (on leave 2010/2011) >> http://users.dickinson.edu/~helwegm/index.html >> **************************************************** >> >> >> >> From: FLINT, ROBERT [mailto:[email protected]] >> Sent: Monday, March 21, 2011 11:16 >> To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) >> Subject: RE: [tips] Anonymous Post >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> It is a slippery slope! We have been asked/required to participate in an >> increasingly growing number of such events over the years. While I agree >> that some recruitment-/conversion-/retention-related activity is ok, we are >> now asked to cover approximately 7 3-hr accepted student/transfer advising >> days over the summer during which we are not under contract, plus another 6 >> or so prospective student and early acceptance events during the normal >> fall/spring academic year. >> >> >> >> Rob Flint >> >> ------------------------------------- >> >> Robert W. Flint, Jr., Ph.D. >> >> Professor of Psychology >> >> The College of Saint Rose >> >> Albany, NY 12203-1490 >> >> 518-458-5379 >> >> [email protected] >> >> >> >> From: Helweg-Larsen, Marie [mailto:[email protected]] >> Sent: Monday, March 21, 2011 4:04 AM >> To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) >> Subject: RE: [tips] Anonymous Post >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> I don’t think there is anything fundamentally wrong with having faculty help >> with recruitment. Faculty already help with recruitment in other ways (at >> least I do) such as by hosting prospective students in their classes, >> meeting with them, answering questions from them about the psychology >> program, etc. I’ve also given talks to visiting families (with my students >> about faculty-student research). A lot of colleges “sell” close >> faculty-student contact as one of their primary assets so getting a call or >> an email from a faculty member congratulating them on getting accepted is a >> way to reinforce that. It is also (I suspect) more meaningful to correspond >> with a specific faculty member instead of a staff person in admissions (at >> least about psychology related issues). Does it actually help? – I have no >> idea. I think the admissions people figure that personal contact is likely >> to make students feel welcome. >> >> >> >> Of course it should be voluntary (at a place I used to work, one faculty >> member said that she was pretty sure that her call discouraged students from >> attending because she was so awkward on the phone). >> >> >> >> Marie >> >> >> >> **************************************************** >> Marie Helweg-Larsen, Ph.D. >> Associate Professor of Psychology >> Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS), +45 2065 1360 >> >> Dickinson College (on leave 2010/2011) >> http://users.dickinson.edu/~helwegm/index.html >> **************************************************** >> >> >> >> From: Annette Taylor [mailto:[email protected]] >> Sent: Sunday, March 20, 2011 22:24 >> To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) >> Subject: RE: [tips] Anonymous Post >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Oh, it was not my post! But that's OK. It is someone else on tips who wanted >> to remain anonymous. I just want to clarify that this is NOT happening at my >> institution. Just for the record! >> >> >> >> I didn't realize that if I left off my sig line that it would still be >> linked to me, LOL. I posted this as a courtesy to another tipster. >> >> >> >> Annette >> >> >> >> Annette Kujawski Taylor, Ph. D. >> >> Professor, Psychological Sciences >> >> University of San Diego >> >> 5998 Alcala Park >> >> San Diego, CA 92110 >> >> [email protected] >> >> ________________________________ >> >> From: don allen [[email protected]] >> Sent: Sunday, March 20, 2011 12:26 PM >> To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) >> Subject: Re: [tips] Anonymous Post >> >> >> >> Hi Annette- >> >> >> >> I don't know whether there are data which show that these types of faculty >> contacts boost (or hinder) recruitment. That said, I always resisted >> management's attempts to get faculty to "market" their "product". I have no >> training in sales and marketing and I don't think that it should be part of >> the job description (unless, of course, you are teaching sales & marketing). >> I think that efforts like these reflect two things: A panic mentality in >> administrators and a desire for free labour. If management really thinks >> that this is a productive way to increase enrollment then they should hire >> professionals to do the job. >> >> >> >> -Don. >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: Annette Taylor <[email protected]> >> Date: Sunday, March 20, 2011 12:09 pm >> Subject: [tips] Anonymous Post >> To: "Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS)" >> <[email protected]> >> >>> Anonymous post >>> Our institution is experiencing a decline in enrollment and as a >>> way to reverse this trend the administration is asking faculty >>> members to call prospective students. They provide the faculty >>> with a short friendly script, which in no way directly >>> encourages the student to enroll. It simply asks the student >>> whether s/he has questions and to feel free to contact the >>> faculty member or institution if questions about the school or >>> program arise. >>> Some faculty members endorse the effort while others see it as a >>> ill-conceived strategy that might not only be counterproductive, >>> but that also demeans the profession. >>> What are your thoughts on this type of strategy? Is there >>> evidence that phone calls by faculty members to prospective >>> students increase the number of applicants who end up enrolling >>> in an institution? >>> Any thoughts and comments would be greatly appreciated. >>> >>> >>> --- >>> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >>> To unsubscribe click here: >>> >>> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13157.966b795bc7f3ccb35e3da08aebe98f18&n=T&l=tips&o=9508or >>> send a blank email to >>> leave-9508-13157.966b795bc7f3ccb35e3da08aebe98...@fsulist.frostburg.edu >> >> Don Allen >> Retired professor >> Langara College >> >> --- >> >> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >> >> To unsubscribe click here: >> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13534.4204dc3a11678c6b1d0be57cfe0a21b0&n=T&l=tips&o=9510 >> >> (It may be necessary to cut and paste the above URL if the line is broken) >> >> or send a blank email to >> leave-9510-13534.4204dc3a11678c6b1d0be57cfe0a2...@fsulist.frostburg.edu >> >> >> >> --- >> >> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >> >> To unsubscribe click here: >> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a4468797f&n=T&l=tips&o=9512 >> >> (It may be necessary to cut and paste the above URL if the line is broken) >> >> or send a blank email to >> leave-9512-13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a44687...@fsulist.frostburg.edu >> >> >> >> --- >> >> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >> >> To unsubscribe click here: >> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=130718.621a33518e2ff34bdfc40993e2334d79&n=T&l=tips&o=9522 >> >> (It may be necessary to cut and paste the above URL if the line is broken) >> >> or send a blank email to >> leave-9522-130718.621a33518e2ff34bdfc40993e2334...@fsulist.frostburg.edu >> >> >> >> --- >> >> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >> >> To unsubscribe click here: >> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a4468797f&n=T&l=tips&o=9523 >> >> (It may be necessary to cut and paste the above URL if the line is broken) >> >> or send a blank email to >> leave-9523-13234.b0e864a6eccfc779c8119f5a44687...@fsulist.frostburg.edu >> >> --- >> >> You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. >> >> To unsubscribe click here: >> http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13541.42a7e8017ab9578358f118300f4720fb&n=T&l=tips&o=9524 >> >> (It may be necessary to cut and paste the above URL if the line is broken) >> >> or send a blank email to >> leave-9524-13541.42a7e8017ab9578358f118300f472...@fsulist.frostburg.edu > > > > -- > -- Mike > > For Sale: Baby Shoes, Never Worn. > (Hemingway) > > --- > You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. > To unsubscribe click here: > http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13522.468cbac056133a996283cca7e2976336&n=T&l=tips&o=9529 > or send a blank email to > leave-9529-13522.468cbac056133a996283cca7e2976...@fsulist.frostburg.edu --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. 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