ERIC Number: EJ809696
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008
Pages: 6
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0190-2946
EISSN: N/A
The Twenty-First-Century Professoriate
Plater, William M.
Academe, v94 n4 p35-40 Jul-Aug 2008
Not long ago, most academic insiders felt confident in saying, "the faculty 'are' the university." The faculty may still be the university, but who are the faculty? From public community colleges to private research universities, America has created the most powerful machine for the development of human capital in the history of the world. Yet an unattended change in the academic workforce puts at risk the supply chain of America's talent, the very creativity and innovation that has set the faculty apart. The actual work ordinarily considered to be "faculty work" is increasingly done by specialists in, respectively, teaching, research, professional service, or administration. The holistic, integrated career of the "professor" is being relegated to a decreasing minority in most institutions and remains intact at only a relative few elite colleges and universities. Without some countervailing force--perhaps in the form of a restated vision of the professoriate--the very concept of faculty work as the work of a profession may be lost. In this article, the author contends that a new vision is needed to create a positive future for the faculty.
Descriptors: Human Capital, Research Universities, Vision, Professional Services, College Faculty, Higher Education, Administrator Role, Governance
American Association of University Professors. 1012 Fourteenth Street NW Suite 500, Washington, DC 20005. Tel: 800-424-2973; Tel: 202-737-5900; Fax: 202-737-5526; e-mail: academe@aaup.org; Web site: http://www.aaup.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A