UMKC New Chairs/Program Directors Workshop August 8, 2013

What does a newly appointed chair need to know? (Chu, 2006)  Chairs officially represent the department  Chairs are members of the team that is leading the institution as well as their own academic unit  Chairs are usually not personally liable for actions undertaken in the course of fulfilling their professional responsibilities (exceptions include – actions taken outside scope of job description, action that is unprofessional, malicious, reckless or imprudent)  Maintain confidentiality  The best sources of information on how to be a good chair are the best chairs on campus

What does a newly appointed chair need to know? (Chu, 2006) – cont.  How much chairs are able to do is largely dependent on how much support their deans are willing and able to publicly provide  Credibility is the chair’s most important personal asset  Who you spend time with should have your undivided attention  Maximize the talents of the faculty  Chairs have fiduciary responsibility  Chairs should operationalize the strategic plan into achievable pieces and make daily decisions in support of the plan  Not every problem is a real problem  There are two types of chairs: reactive chairs and proactive chairs  Chairs can make a real difference