Is it my job to get to know each student "as a person"? This is the focus of Chory and Offstein's (2016) thoughtful essay. This article examines the many ways that changes in education over recent decades have affected core assumptions around the relationships faculty are expected to have with students. Chory and Offstein (2016) explore…

The article, "Your Professor Will Know You as a Person" (Chory & Offstein, 2016) brings two groups of thoughts to the author's mind. First, postsecondary education is changing in ways that are forcing higher education institutions to reformulate their strategies. These changes are likely to increase the heterogeneity of universities,…

As an administrator, one who still considers himself to be "faculty" at the core, the author can appreciate the position of Chory & Offstein (2016) in their essay, and understand the intent is to create dialog. In service to that goal, the author thinks we need to place this discussion within the "lived reality" of most…

Stephen Brookfield has written and edited 10 books on adult learning, teaching, and critical thinking. He is a recipient of a number of awards, including the World Award for Literature in Adult Education (in 1986, 1989, 1996, and 2005), the Imogene Okes Award for Outstanding Research in Adult Education (in 1986), and the Leadership Award from the…

Proposes the metaphor of professional/client rather than student-as-customer to characterize the relationship between professors and students. Uses examples of fitness trainer, management consultant, accounting service, and mountain guide to illustrate faculty and student roles. (SK)

Conceives of the classroom as a service encounter between marketer (instructor) and stakeholders (students), making stakeholder satisfaction the key to meeting learning goals. Suggests ways to create value in the classroom: understanding what stakeholders need and want, efficiently delivering services, and demonstrating product leadership. (SK)