Across the field of higher education and within the discipline of sociology, several important reconceptualizations of academic work have emerged. While not absolutely in sync, there is a striking overlap across three of the most visible of these: Boyer's Scholarship Reconsidered, Carnegie's Stewardship of the Discipline, and Burawoy's Public Sociology. Putting the development of these conceptualizations into the larger context of shifts in higher education, I briefly review each, putting special emphasis on the synergy among them. However, despite these overarching guides and a number of other noted innovations (particularly in the scholarship of teaching and learning), new challenges have arisen. I end by discussing these new developments, drawing from basic sociological research to provide insights for maintaining gains and pushing these efforts forward. In particular, SoTL and the aging of the cohort of leaders who pioneered these redefinition efforts emphasize the importance of Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) programs, and the placement of new PhDs with this broad vision in PhD-granting departments, as well as in liberal arts colleges and universities. (Contains 4 tables and 2 footnotes.)