The Becker Blog

OR: Growing Pains: How to Evolve from a College into a University

And, in particular, how to become a university of which everyone can be proud.

I’ve been pondering this question as I am now at an institution (which I believe has great promise) that is poised to change from being a college with a very good reputation for student satisfaction, to being a undergraduate university with a reputation it must build.

Then there are many faculty who have been at the college a long time. Many of those have chosen to stay at the college because it is what it is. What will it mean to become a university?

There are (primarily) new faculty who have come to the college expressly because it is going to become a university. They have personal research agendas. If they are not given the time, space, and access to the necessary infrastructure to actually do their research, they will not stay. This means that the only people who will stay, are those not interested in doing real research. No amount of branding will be able to change the fact that the institution will retain the culture of a college.

I am one of the new guys on the block, but one who has literally grown up in a university environment (a university that has gone from first-rate, one-to-be-proud-of to third-rate, and one that brings shame to anyone left who still has integrity). This gives me a perspective that may be unique.

Read the rest of this entry »

Warning: what follows is another rant.

So here I am working at a new job.

I really like the institution (for the most part).

I really like the faculty (for the most part).

I really like the job (for the most part).

BUT (there’s always one of those when a post starts off like this)….

I have been at it for 2 months now and I am becoming more and more (and MORE) frustrated. Wanna know why? If you do, keep reading. Read the rest of this entry »