The State of the Presidency
College presidencies are in the news these days as the first woman is named the president of Harvard University and the American Council of Education (ACE) releases the results of its 20th annual survey which profiles presidents of colleges and universities throughout the country. I wish Dr. Faust well at Harvard. No presidency is easy these days and I suspect that Harvard is among the most challenging institutions to lead. I rarely read these survey results, but one item caught my eye as I glanced at the ACE summary.
As they have for years, college and university presidents, whether at private or public institutions, big or small, self-report that they find working with students the most rewarding part of their job, despite the fact that they spent a small percentage of their time with students. This is certainly true for me, and should come as no surprise to anyone.
Most college presidents worked their way up through the ranks of higher education. While more and more new presidents are hired from the corporate sector, a vast majority held one or more positions at a college or university prior to accepting their first presidency. And most people who choose to enter the profession of college teaching or administration do so because of their desire to work with students and the satisfaction they receive from helping students complete their education.
Much has changed over the last decade regarding students. Campuses experience the same issues that are reflected in culture and society. But there remain a vast number of constants that make interactions with students whether in the classroom, in a meeting, at an event or in an informal conversation such a wonderful experience. In the end, students today are no different than throughout history. They come to our campuses with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm and value the educational experience in so many ways.
Just in the past few days I had the opportunity to watch our students compete on the basketball floor, observe our students in a classroom, and meet with a student researching a paper for which I could serve as a resource. In every experience I was impressed with the dedication to learning (even on the basketball floor), the seriousness of achieving goals, and the spontaneous bursts of excitement.
College and university presidents may be getting older and the profession may be changing slowly, but I trust that 20 years from now when ACE publishes the results of its annual survey, the respondents will still indicate that students are the best part of the job. It’s nice to know that while some things change, so many of the most important things remain the same!
(As always, your comments and questions are welcome).