On bringing back kindness to academic life (or we need more coffee).
This past week, I spent time at two universities with strong groups in my discipline.
At both uni’s, the students & faculty offered me a coffee each day. Really, a couple of times a day, jetlag can be tough.
It stood out bc at my uni, various rules make it difficult for the department chair to offer this basic amenity.
I admired their #coffee machines, expressed my thanks for the life saving beverage, & commented that my uni was unable to extend the same courtesy.
The response was telling.
I was informed that the chair had decided to overcome local barriers & simply pay for the #coffeeservice from their own pocket - because it was great for the team.
It reminded me of my visit to another uni - where the #PhDstudents had arranged for an industrial grade coffee machine & took up a collection from the faculty to keep it stocked.
What impressed me, was the wisdom of the chairs & students in choosing to invest in a shared good. It showed a commitment to the group.
By buying coffee, they demonstrated that they cared for the well-being of each other, create opportunities for conversations, & afford private moments for thought.
Such gestures on behalf of the group seem increasingly rare in academe.
When I was a student, faculty often bought coffee or had the entire dept over for parties.
As a young faculty member, I recall senior people taking a collection for staff - & leading the way by making a contribution.
As I approached tenure, I was socialized to be a steward for the group and taught it was an essential requirement for tenure.
This translated into good behaviors, helping with dissertations, working with student groups, & more.
No one asked should I do this? Or what was in it for me?
It was done bc to earn tenure & be part of the group, you had to work on behalf of the group.
Less & less, I see these behaviors manifest in young faculty.
More & more, I hear young faculty counseled to focus on their research (and reminded service doesn’t matter).
It made me ponder why?
The past 20 years, by upping demands for research productivity, Deans have redirected attention from the group to the self.
Where once assessment was is the person a good scholar, a great teacher, & a decent colleague, they focus more on #research papers & teaching evaluations & less on #collegiality.
Mostly, I like the shift, it’s more objective.
But, a voice, nags in my ear, asking do we reward people with raises & #promotion, who are jerks?
No.
So what to do?
Deans will not change their incentive schemes, perhaps, perhaps, bc they are asked to push us to do more with less.
Senior faculty need to practice #kindness.
We must attend to how we talk to & about each other. We are role models.
We must show young #faculty that our strength rests not in how we do as individuals but in how we perform as a group.
We need more #coffee.
If we do, we will build a better academy.
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