Introduction

In a recent blog post, I shared the results of a yearlong study that identified the 7 Leadership Competencies* essential for senior-level positions. Building on those findings, I’ve provided a list of interview questions below to help you assess whether candidates demonstrate these key competencies. These questions can be used during individual interviews or by search committees tasked with identifying qualified candidates.

1. Trust-Building: Behaving in a way that is trustworthy, consistent, and accountable.

I imagine that Chief Academic Officers typically spend most of their time caring for the forest, not individual trees. Yet I spent my twenty-plus years in higher education working with the trees. I recently read a post on this blog about the benefits of teaching a class as a Chief Academic Officer (CAO). I also think CAOs could benefit from regularly setting aside time to engage with individual student experiences of academic policies and procedures such as repeating a course, withdrawing from a class, the length of the drop and add period, transferring classes, or returning from a leave of absence. 

While these policies and procedures are not flashy, trendy, or exciting, I believe they do significantly impact a student’s college experience. I spent 10 years as an academic adviser, and I had plenty of tears in my office. Often, the tears where the result of a challenging experience with a policy or procedure. 

In Episode 23 of the EdUp Provost podcast, host Gregor Thuswaldner interviewed Amelia Parnell, President of NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. Read an excerpt from the episode here:

EdUp Provost: What are some current trends in student affairs that provosts should especially pay close attention to?

Amelia Parnell:
One that comes to mind for sure is the evolution of the academic transcript. I'm mentioning that because the role of student affairs as facilitators of learning—I put that in the context of the provost because, obviously, academic affairs, learning, is at the top of the agenda. The trend that we're seeing very, very quickly increasing is that students are perceiving their learning as happening everywhere on the campus.

Provosts are responsible for making decisions about a wide variety of topics. Sometimes you will find out that you made an incorrect decision. You may not have had all the information you needed to make the best decision in that situation, or you may have ignored some piece of information that turned out to be very important in making that decision.  In any case, it is important that you acknowledge the fact that you made an incorrect decision and that you are  prepared to change your decision.  It is necessary that you let all of those who were affected by your decision know that you now realize that you made an incorrect decision.  Some people believe that admitting that they were wrong will diminish their authority and result in those that report to them losing trust in them.  In fact, the opposite is true.  If you make an incorrect decision, many of those who report to you will know the decision was incorrect.  Admitting your mistake will demonstrate to them that you are trying to the best you can and that you are willing to hear opinions that are contrary to yours.  This will actually result in people who report to you having greater trust in you because they will see that you are open to hearing things that may be difficult to hear and that you are willing to be open to changing your decision.  Sticking to your incorrect decision can have several damaging effects including those who report to you losing trust in you. This will result in them not being willing to tell you things you really need to hear.  Put your ego aside and be willing to listen and reevaluate your decisions.  You will be a stronger and more effective leader if you do so. Put your ego aside and always be willing to listen to opinions that are contrary to yours.  Be willing to change your decisions when it becomes clear that they are incorrect.

Colleges and universities are integral parts of their communities, and it's common for third parties to request permission to use campus facilities and resources. In the interest of fostering positive town-gown relationships, administrators may feel inclined to offer these institutional assets. However, it’s essential to carefully consider the potential liabilities associated with third-party use. This checklist highlights key factors to evaluate before granting access to institutional assets.

Career-connected learning integrates career exploration and job-ready knowledge, skills, and abilities into the curriculum, program by program. It gives students on-ramps toward professional preparation, stackability for room to develop a specialized focus while maintaining progress toward a credential, and enhanced durable skills taught through general education that employers seek for leadership positions in their organizations. Finally, to prepare students for the workforce, career-connected learning offers high-impact experiences: internships, co-ops, apprenticeships, and mentorships that take place in the community beyond campus.

Increasingly, states--and stakeholders--are driving alignment between the nation’s workforce needs and higher education’s academic work.  Also, with the cost of access to the first rungs of tertiary education for traditionally aged students, families need assurance of a strong return on their investment. While students experience a demonstrable return on investment when they graduate from institutions that have based academic planning on career-connected learning, there are wide-ranging benefits for the university in connecting learning to careers, also.

In a recently commissioned study by Academic Search, researchers identified seven key leadership competencies as being crucial to effective presidential leadership in higher education. However, these competencies are not exclusive to presidents alone; they are equally essential for all senior leadership roles across higher education institutions. The research involved interviews with over 700 current college and university presidents, alongside the collection of additional relevant data, over the course of a comprehensive year-long study. For those interested, a free copy of the full report is available at:  https://www.academicsearch.org/blog/competencies-for-the-college-presidency/

As you work to build and strengthen your leadership team, it’s important to think about how junior members can be equipped to develop these competencies. Consider implementing mentorship programs, leadership development workshops, or other forms of continuing education to foster professional growth and ensure your team is poised to take on future leadership challenges. Reflect on your own leadership strengths and areas for improvement: Are there gaps in your skill set? What resources or opportunities can you leverage to acquire and enhance these competencies?

As a Provost many people will come to you when they have a problem or need advice. You may believe that it is your responsibility to give your opinion and advice on every issue that arises.  This is a very unwise practice and will often result in those who report to you to avoid discussing some issues in your presence. It is best to offer your opinion when it is asked for and on topics that you have expertise and/or experience.  If you give your opinion and advice on every issue that comes up, others will stop listening to you even when an issue arises where  your advice and opinion would be helpful. It is difficult to distinguish what to pay attention to when someone is always talking and providing their opinion and advice even when their opinion and advice are sound and likely to be helpful.   If you are talking a great deal, you will not be listening.  Not listening sends a message that you don't value what someone else thinks, you only value what you think. 

Listening is a hard skill to acquire.  Having done a lot of marriage counseling, I can attest to the fact that a major hallmark of a dysfunctional relationship is the failure of one or both parties to listen to each other.  They may talk a great deal, but they rarely listen to what the other person says.  When It appeared to me that the couples were not listening to each other, I would stop the conversation and ask the nonspeaking spouse to tell me what her or his spouse just said.  It was amazing how often they had no idea.  They were too busy focusing on what they were about to say and did not listen to what their spouse was saying. 

College campuses were historically viewed as safe spaces where differences were welcome and where people were educated about tolerance and accepted.  Sadly, many campus climates appear to be changing, and this has not always been the case recently.  

As states continue to mandate the closure of various diversity offices and initiatives, what can chief academic officers do to ensure that all students, faculty and staff feel welcome and supported on campus? For starters, we need to make sure that everyone is using the same definitions for diversity and inclusion.  Regulators, both governmental and nonprofit, often only ask institutions of higher education to report certain diversity data such as gender, race and ethnicity.  By only calling out these groups, it can lead to an impression that other markers of diversity may not be viewed in an equal way.  For example, data may not be kept or reported on diversity in religion, diversity in terms of physical or mental impairments, diversity based on political points of view, diversity based on sexual orientation, diversity based on socio-economic status, diversity based on citizenship status, and countless other categories of ways in which everyone is unique and different from someone else. 

For many years institutions of higher education have been emphasizing the importance of lifelong learning as an important goal for their students.  The goal is to give students the skills and knowledge for them to continue to engage in learning about things that will enhance their knowledge and capabilities in their professional and private lives.  Several years ago, I attended a celebration of the tenth anniversary of a psychological services center on the campus of a very large university.  The ceremony included talks by alumni of the doctoral program in Clinical Psychology.  One of the speakers said that he now does many things that he did not learn in graduate school.  He went on to say that his graduate education taught him how to learn those things and that he was grateful for what he had learned in his graduate program because those skills allowed him to be successful in his career.  This alumnus was clearly a lifelong learner, and his program could be credited with giving him the skills to be so.

Lifelong learning should be a goal not only for students but also for faculty members and administrators.  Faculty members teach in a specific discipline.  All disciplines increase their knowledge through research which often results in publication in professional journals. 

Introduction

Navigating the complexities of free speech and student protests is challenging for both public and private institutions. The distinction between protected speech under state constitutions and the rules of private institutions can be difficult to discern. This checklist offers practical suggestions for chief academic officers to effectively manage these issues. 

Introduction¹

Fundraising is as much of an art as it is a science. This checklist will help demystify fundraising and ensure that you have the right information BEFORE accepting a donor’s gift.  The checklist is prepared in two parts. Part two focuses on more of the fundamentals of capital campaign planning.

Introduction

To build a viable advancement program it’s important that you along with your deans and directors understand the ins and outs of fundraising, as every good development officer will tell you.  Private support offers the greatest opportunity for institutional advancement.  The better you are able to navigate these waters, the more success you can expect from your team.  You can improve your fundraising potential, and that of your staff, by ensuring that you and they are well-versed in fundraising fundamentals.  Whether your institution uses a centralized or decentralized model for fundraising, you still need to understand what makes for good implementation of a fundraising plan.

Fundraising is about building relationships and laying a solid foundation for the “Ask”.  Fundraising is as much of an art as it is a science. However, there are some fundamental rules that will help create realistic expectations in a capital campaign and when negotiating gift agreements with donors.  Chief Academic Officers are often called upon to create campaigns and approve gift proposals for colleges and programs.  This checklist will help demystify fundraising and ensure that you have the right information BEFORE accepting a donor’s gift.  The checklist is prepared in two parts. Part One focuses on the fundamentals of fundraising.  Part Two presents more in-depth information about capital campaign planning and success.

After some time as a Provost, you will get to know the personalities of those who report to you.  Some will be more enthusiastic than their colleagues and some will be more relaxed and laid back.   Some will have lots of questions for you and others will only ask questions when the need additional information.  Some will produce things you ask for quickly and some will take more time even though both meet the deadline you set.  Some of those who report to you will produce outstanding reports and some will produce reports that fill the requirement but are not outstanding. Some of those who report to you will always be present with a positive mood and attitude and others will fluctuate in their mood and attitude.  After many interactions, you will get to know how each of those who report to you do their job and how they generally present themselves to you. 

It is important that you pay attention to any change in the behavior, attitude, or mood on the part of those who report to you.  Noticeable changes in these characteristics could be a sign that something is wrong with them that needs your attention.  I had an administrator who was a very productive person.  He was hard working, enthusiastic, and his reports and other documents were among the best I had ever seen.  He had a good relationship with his peers and some close relationships with a few of his colleagues.  After several years, I noticed that he seemed to be on edge a lot.  His emails were more negative and questioning than they had ever been, and he seemed annoyed when I gave him some tasks to complete.  He seemed to have changed and not for the better.  After some time, I sent him an email asking him how he was doing.  I said that I noticed a change in his behavior and mood, and I was concerned that he may be having problems that were affecting him.  I was careful not to be accusing or punishing in what I wrote.  He responded to my email apologizing for his behavior. When I responded I said he had nothing to apologize for and that I was concerned that he might be going through something with which I could provide some support and help.  In his response, he thanked me for my concern and support and asked if he could speak to me.  He gave me a call and we discussed what I had observed.  It turns out that there were several personal issues that were weighing on him and that it was difficult for him to focus on his work and these problems were affecting his mood and attitude.  I never asked him about personal problems, but simply offered my support and help.  I told him that I didn’t want to intrude into his personal life and told him that  I was available to help in any way I could.  He said he really appreciated my concern and willingness to help but he was handling those personal issues himself and was confident he would be able to work things out.  After that interaction, I would ask him how things were going. He would tell me he was fine and that he had been dealing with his problems well and he again thanked me for my concern.  I noticed that his behavior, mood, and attitude began to return to his normal state.  I mentioned that to him on occasions.  During all of our interactions, I was careful not to get involved in his problems but reminded him that I was available for help and support when he thought he needed it.  I also was careful not to ask him how he was doing every time we interacted so that I would not be putting additional stress on him by continually bringing up the issues. As a Provost, it is important for you to be seen as a person who is supportive and helpful.  Being negative or punishing to a productive person who reports to when they make a mistake or go through a rough time in their lives only makes things worse.  It demoralizes that person and communicates to the rest of those who report to you that you are not willing to understand human fallibility when it comes to dealing with issues and problems. 

The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the United States Department of Education, by virtue of its special place within the US Department of Education (ED), is the enforcer ensuring that hate has no place on college and university campuses.  OCR applies a series of laws to protect all students from discrimination on, among other things, the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition), age, disability, medical condition, marital status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, and gender expression. When it comes to religion, OCR derives authority from Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) which protects students of any religion from discrimination, including harassment, based on a student’s actual or perceived, “shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity.”  

The regulation implementing Title VI, at 34 C.F.R. § 100.3, provides that no person shall, on the basis of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to discrimination under any program to which Title VI applies.

Chief Academic Officers are used to being tied to their email inbox, and one of the things you likely read on a daily basis are compendia from the higher ed press, much of which is filled with stories related to legal complexities in some form or other on campuses nationwide. Whether it is a new high-profile lawsuit, a debate over free speech, a contract dispute with a president or coach, a governance squabble, a set of new regulations or guidance, or new proposed legislation that would require institutional compliance, the legal environment is now inextricably tied with higher education.

Our recent book, All the Campus Lawyers: Litigation, Regulation, and the New Era of Higher Education [link to https://www.amazon.com/All-Campus-Lawyers-Litigation-Regulation/dp/0674270495/] (Harvard, 2024), tells the story of the current and trending legal controversies embroiling American higher education and their evolution over the last several years. Much of the inspiration for the book came from our own lives. One of us (Jacobsen) was the Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Wesleyan University before coming to Hobart and William Smith Colleges as President. The other of us (Guard) is the General Counsel at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and has spent many an hour in meetings with the CAO. Here are some points for you to consider regarding your relationship with your legal Counsel, whether inside or outside the institution. Of course, we also think you should consult our book for more advice, as well as to consider the wide range of legal and quasi-legal issues that you either already deal with or may deal with in the future!

As a Provost you have a number of people that report to you.  You will most likely have the most contact with Deans and your staff including Assistant and Associate Provosts as well as administrative assistants. You will also have some contact with faculty members who may come to you with a problem with which you can help.   It is important that you find out if the faculty member has discussed the matter with her or his chair before coming to you.  If not, you would be wise to have her or him do that before you speak to them.  

In your dealings with these people, you will often have a small number of those who report to you who continually complain about their situation.  They will often express dissatisfaction with a wide variety of issues, some of which are not in your control.  In many cases you have no basis for dismissing them either because they are good at their job, and they may make important contributions or because they have job security in the form of tenure.  

Shared governance is a concept that is valued by many in higher education. Through it, faculty, administration, and governing boards are oriented toward working together to achieve the university mission. Having been a member of various higher education institutions, I’ve had the opportunity to see all that shared governance can contribute. I’ve also seen the challenges it can present, particularly regarding organizational change.

Several years ago, I had the privilege of working on a leadership team charged with reimagining a regional comprehensive university in a rural New England town. A new president brought a unique vision; as dean, I was on the team to make that vision happen. It was an exciting and heady time during which we reworked gen ed and overhauled the curriculum to embrace an integrated, project-based approach to undergraduate education. We were on a tight timeline (4 years) to update the mission and remake the institution to enhance enrollment and meet board expectations. It was going to require the engagement of the entire community. We knew we needed to build our organizational capacity for change if we were going to succeed. We needed to find a way to be innovative while respecting past practices.

Faculty, staff, and administrators are trying to understand AI's potential benefits and risks to higher education. Colleagues from MIT recently published a handy guide  that provides good advice on topics ranging from “guidelines, guardrails, and governance” to “acceptable AI use.” In recent months, much has been written about the potential for AI to decrease the workload for campus administrators—from admissions to advancement and from counseling services to the registrar’s office. 

Instructors, on the other hand, have had mixed feelings at best with the arrival of ChatGPT and other large language model-based programs. Although a fair share of essays have expressed instructors’ feelings of loss and nostalgia, there is also a sizable number of professors who embrace AI in their classrooms, knowing that students will need to be AI literate for life after college. They realize AI is here for good and will change everything, including classroom instruction. We are, of course, only at the beginning of the AI revolution, and time will tell how drastic changes will be over the next decade.

Introduction

As a past board secretary and frequent speaker for the  Association of Governing Boards, I can tell you that most board members need guidance and support from institutional administrators.  After all, serving as a board member of a college or university is not their permanent job, nor should you assume that they have sufficient expertise in higher education administration.  Most board members are faithful alumni and/or major donors who have a keen interest in the success of the institution.  And although the President is primarily responsible for the care and feeding of the board, the Chief Academic Officer also has a role to play. Many Chief Academic Officers are charged with leading the discussion of the board’s academic affairs committee, and most CAO’s also provide annual reports on the state of the division or reports on accreditation issues and tenure decisions. You can help your board with careful preparation of your board materials and presentations.  The checklist below is designed to prompt your thinking about your role in educating and inspiring your public or private government board.¹