In a piece for Inside Higher Ed, Jack Stripling wrote yesterday about the College's Legacy of Distinction Fund, a $5 million fundraising effort spearheaded by College Dean Meredith Woo to hire new faculty members. The article quoted Robert Clark, a professor at N.C. State's College of Management, who pointed out that with this program, the University has made hiring new faculty a priority rather than retaining current professors. Whenever an investment is made, the prudence of that decision must be judged relative to what other needs could be met with that funding. All financial decisions are inherently tradeoffs. In the case of the LDF, the most apparent alternative would be spending more money on faculty retention efforts instead of hiring new blood.
It is worth noting that the LDF is comprised solely of private donations, meaning that resources are not redirected from other purposes. It seems plausible that an effort to hire faculty during what Woo calls a "buyer's market" may be more likely to motivate alumni to contribute than a comparable faculty retention program would. Replenishing the University's stock of professors and planning for the long-run seems more inspiring than simply encouraging more people to stick around - rightfully or wrongfully so. For its part, the University takes other steps to focus on retention, University spokesperson Carol Wood said.
Of course, common sense says that both retention and hiring efforts are needed, even though the non-academic side of the University is in the midst of a hiring freeze. Most of the problem relates to demographics: The main purpose of the LDF is to replace retiring faculty members, of whom there will be many during the coming years. "As of March, the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences had 88 tenured faculty members age 65 and older, including 33 above the age of 70," according to a University press release. The $5 million will be used during the next five years to pay for the salaries of 12 incoming faculty members. Each of the new hires will replace a retiring professor, and there will be something of a mentorship period before the outgoing professor retires. Many of the faculty members being replaced have expertise in key specialties, and although the new professors need not have identical research focuses, there is a good deal of overlap.
In addition to the benefits of attracting younger faculty, the LDF is a sign that the University has the right mindset during a lean economy. The hiring push is a proactive strategy during a time when many colleges are passively cutting costs and retrenching while waiting for a recovery. But recessions present opportunities for savvy businesses - and colleges, it would appear - to make gains on the competition. Healthy competition among colleges is a good thing, and if the funding is available, it makes sense for schools like the University to invest in its faculty sooner rather than later. Professors are the "academic core" of the University, so to speak, and a number of glimmering new facilities like the South Lawn may help attract talented faculty.
There are other financial advantages that make the program a winner. The salaries of newer faculty members are almost always lower than those who are about to retire, so there will be some savings realized once the older generation retires in a few years. Additionally, the tight job market makes it is easier to track down interested professors and get them onboard than would be the case otherwise.
For all the programs strengths, one quote from Woo in Stripling's piece is particularly intriguing: "The idea [of the fund] is predicated on the recruitment of top people actually being easier if we can nest it in the reputation of the person about to retire." Administrators should pay close attention to the effects of this arrangement. Although there appear to be obvious benefits to allowing new professors to learn from the "legends," the University is better off when its hires bring fresh teaching ideas and different research perspectives to the institution. That does not necessarily diminish the value of mentoring opportunities, but it does require that all professors feel a degree of independence when they arrive on Grounds.
Read More
CARTER: U.Va. Health owes clarity to transplant patients
By Nathaniel Carter | 2 days agoUnfortunately, this negative press is fully the fault of U.Va. Health — it failed to address significant stakeholder concerns when crafting its justification.
EDITORIAL: Upholding medical amnesty is a collective effort
By Editorial Board | 2 days agoUniversity leadership, Greek life organizations and students themselves must recommit to the safety provided by an effective and knowledgeable use of medical amnesty.
KURTZWEIL: Dockworkers’ unions cannot avoid the threat of automation
By Paul Kurtzweil | 3 days agoInstead of continuing to demand decreased automation, the union should work with the legislature in the hopes of driving investment into the reorganization of the current workforce.
