Customer Reviews

Academic Leadership: A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Dr. Leaming's book provides a comforting reminder that we need not > waste time and energy reinventing the wheel. New and veteran > administrators, particularly at the academic departmental level, can gain > invaluable guidance by taking advantage of Dean Leaming's 30-plus years of > experience. Whatever they are experiencing, he has already been through -- > numerous times. He knows their challenges and anxieties, and, > more importantly, the solutions to them. > > His book is written in plain, easy-to-understand language. It deals > with everyday duties from attracting and hiring the most qualified people > to dismissing those who don't work out, and from encouraging good teaching > and research to dealing with difficult faculty members. The book also > includes helpful summaries, checklists, tables and sample forms. > > Academic Leadership: A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department is a must-have resource book for the newly appointed department head who wantsto avoid the trial-and-error management method. Dr. Leaming has been a department head at five universites and a dean at two. And he has laid out a roadmap that will come in handy continually for even the experienced person who still has a distance to travel down the administrative highway. >

Moving from classroom teacher to the role of departmental chairperson often can be fraught with many challenges such a role change presents. Dr. Deryl R. Leaming's text, Academic Leadership, A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department, is a welcome and valuable resource, particularly for the new administrator faced with more issues than ever in today's changing academics. Dr. Leaming knows what he's writing about. He has been there, done that, so to speak, with more than 30 years of experience at five respected universities. His book is indeed a practical guide, offering insight in such areas as faculty evaluation, budgets, time management, legal problems and recruiting students and faculty, to list just a few of the 26 chapters of relevant topics. A real plus is the easy to understand writing style. He's a communications specialist and it shows in his presentation. This is one text that you'll keep on your desktop, not the book shelve

If you've suddenly found yourself in a leadership role, don't panic. Order this book. Do it right now.

I've only had it a few weeks and it's already saved my career from an early demise. I'll even credit this book with lowering my diastolic blood pressure by five points. My dog-eared copy goes to and from work with me everyday.

Leaming has not only anticipated every possible landmine on the Ho Chi Minh trail of academic leadership -- but he can clearly communicate and expertly tell you how to disarm them before they explode. He shows the reader how to anticipate and prepare for every challenge that will likely arise.

A friend (angel?) sent me this book, gift wrapped, to congratulate me on my recent promotion. It'll be difficult to return that favor.

I wish the dean had given me this book a year ago. It would have made my life much easier. The book is easy to read and has solid ideas on how to be a more effective chairperson.

If only I could get some of the administrators of my university to read the book!

I am not only new to academic leadership, but I am new to this country. Deryl Leaming's book has served as an enlightening guide for me, and has helped me earn the assistance and respect of my faculty. This book is among the best investments I have made in my academic career. Thank you.

This second edition of Academic Leadership: A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department is an extraordinarily comprehensive treatment of ways to address the variety of challenges facing department chairpersons in institutions from all types and sectors of higher education. The author, Deryl Leaming, provides an inviting and accessible style of writing that joins abundant references from relevant authorities with occasional episodes from his personal experience of several decades as chair and dean at some four different institutions. The result is a preeminently practical primer that will give new department chairs a valuable roadmap to success in a notoriously difficult position. It is excellent reading for those contemplating serving as a department chairperson or other academic leader. The volume is so comprehensive that even experienced chairpersons will find the book to provide a helpful review of ways to meet their responsibilities and challenges.

This new volume is almost twice as long as its predecessor, offering an expanded treatment of issues raised in the first edition and reflecting more emphasis upon the complexities of today's financial realities. Major sections deal with common concerns about leadership, handling matters of department vision and management, addressing legal issues, contending with a large variety of faculty and student matters, as well as attending to one's own career. The 30 chapters are compact and quite accessible. All are useful and contain lists of web and print resources. I particularly appreciated the units on sexual harassment and the implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as the one on dealing with chronic low achievers. Some 17 appendices provide helpful examples of different policy guidelines and methods of communication.

Anker Publishing has a large variety of often-expensive volumes for academic leaders. Some overlap and others lack originality or comprehensiveness. By contrast, this is a stand-out value that will set a standard for some time to come.

It has been said there are three approaches to dealing with mistakes: Dumb people make mistakes and do not learn from their mistakes; smart people learn from their mistakes, and really smart people learn from the mistakes of others.

Dr. Deryl Leaming provides that third approach in a way. This is not to say he made mistakes in his many years as a college administrator, but his excellent book does provide the reader the opportunity to learn from his significant experience.

He has been there, done that, so to speak, when it comes to leadership in heading a program.

His latest work deals with all the key aspects of being a university department chairperson -- legal issues, faculty matters from hiring effective faculty to dealing with faculty problems, and student matters.

Through the tips in his book he provides experience-based advice that can be of significant benefit to the new or even veteran department head.
He has been a university professor, department chairperson, director of a school of journalism and dean of liberal arts. The reader of this second edition of his academic leadership book can learn from his experience to avoid mistakes in leading a department.

He covers a great deal of advice on procedures, including a number of forms that will be useful.

This second edition is a good read and provides practical advice, particularly for the new department chairperson.

REVIEWER: Ralph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University
lph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University

Dr. Leaming is truely a gifted writer and instructor. He has given more to his students than some are capable of comprehending. The books he has written and his experiences throughout his life make him a special gift to all who read his work or get to know him. He is an extremely precious gift to his students. He goes out of his way to encourage and teach his students. He makes sure his students are preparing for life within their current level,but more importantly,for their future endeavors. A gifted person who only wants to share what he knows in the hopes of helping others.