Challenge as Opportunity: The Academy in the Best and Worst of Times

A National Symposium

Fall 2009

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Recession, Realities, and Resurgence: Challenges and Opportunities for Higher Education

Excerpts from the Presidential Panel featuring U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha J. Kanter; Carlton Brown, President, Clark Atlanta University; John Sexton, President, New York University; and Beverly Daniel Tatum, President, Spelman College.

Learning Matters

Excerpts from the keynote address by Jamie P. Merisotis, Lumina Foundation for Education.

A Chinese Proverb: "May You Live in Interesting Times" or "That Which Does Not Kill You Makes You Stronger"- Faculty Roles and Responsibilities in the New Abyss

Excerpts from a presentation by Thomas W. Garsombke, Diane J. Prince, and Howard Ralph, Clayton State University; Richard Fulton, Troy University; and Gwen Hanks, University of Georgia - Athens.

Beyond Tolerance: Opportunities for Teaching and Learning Compassion in the HBCU Classroom

Excerpts from a presentation by Wendy A. Gaudin, Pamela Waldron-Moore, and Adrian Woods, Xavier University of Louisiana.

Challenges and Opportunities within the Classroom: Facilitating Students' Transition from High School to College

Excerpts from a presentation by Takeisha Wilson, and Danielle Sweat, Clark Atlanta University.

Chaminade University: The Four Year Plan

Excerpts from the presentation by Curtis Washburn and Richard Kido, Chaminade University.

Emerging Pedagogies for Uncertain Times: Student and Faculty Perspectives

Excerpts from a presentation by Sonia V. Gonsalves, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and Marcia Daley, Clark Atlanta University.

Inter- & Intragroup Dialogue and Assessment as Partners for Diversity

Excerpts from a presentation by Kristie A. Ford and Sarah W. Goodwin, Skidmore College.

Legal Implications of Academic Advising

Excerpts from the presentation by Audrey Wolfson Latourette, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.

Faculty-Librarian Collaboration to Teach Information Literacy in an Online Environment

Excerpts from a presentation by Mary Ann Trail and Amy Hadley, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.

Global Ethics in the Classroom

Excerpts from a presentation by Mark Wekander, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras.

Student Interpretations of Disasters: Do Online Students Respond Differently Than Face-to-Face Students? - Evidence From the Classroom

Excerpts from a presentation by Richard Vogel, Farmingdale State College

The Curriculum and the Campus Crisis: When Campus Shootings Impact Classroom Instruction

Excerpts from a presentation by Francine Edwards, Delaware State University.

The Morehouse College W.E.B. Du Bois International HouseA Living and Learning Residential Center to Engage the Global Community

Excerpts from the presentation by Ida Rousseau Mukenge, Gwen Wade, and Samuel Livingston, Morehouse College.

The Role of Language and Popular Culture in Civility

Excerpts from a presentation by Jon A. Yasin, Bergen Community College

'The Times They are a Changin': Promoting Learning beyond the Classroom and Social Activism

Excerpts from a presentation by Dorsia Smith, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras.

We're 20, They're 21

Excerpts from a presentation by Thelma Baxter, Joan Tropnas, and Nancy Philip, Spelman College.

From the Executive Director

When Charles Dickens opened A Tale of Two Cities with his now famous words - "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" - he captured the ambivalence of a society in upheaval and transition. The 21st century academy is also experiencing the best and worst of times. The growth of higher education provides the potential for greater access and expanded opportunity. Our students are now more diverse, more technologically savvy, and more globally aware than any previous college generation. Yet all members of the educational community - students, faculty, and administrators - are currently experiencing the challenges of uncertain times. These challenges have come in the form of financial difficulties, closer scrutiny and accountability, and mismatches between faculty and student expectations. In this time of difficulty, how are educational institutions responding in a manner that benefits all of their constituents? How are we turning challenges into opportunities?

In November 2009 faculty members and other representatives of Faculty Resource Network institutions addressed these questions and issues during a national symposium on "Challenge as Opportunity: The Academy in the Best and Worst of Times," hosted by Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.

This event also provided an occasion to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Network, reflect on its past accomplishments, and look forward to how it can energize our academic community in the years to come. Participants were invited to contribute to our collective mission of identifying and shaping the future priorities of higher education. In this time of transition, the role of the academy becomes even more essential as a source of insight, innovation and inspiration.

In this seventh issue of our online NETWORK: A Journal of Faculty Development, we present excerpts from a number of the presentations that were delivered during that symposium.