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Ask
a Tenured Professor
Many thanks to Debra Stanley, Roz Muraskin,
and Susan Sharp for their insights!
QUESTION 1
After having attended several Professional Conferences,
I have noticed some organizations have "session
moderators" and others have "Chair/discussants"..
Can you explain the differences in expectations/duties?
ANSWER 1
I am not sure there is a difference. The moderator
should have some expertise on the topic, so
that she/he can introduce speakers, ask appropriate
questions and lead the discussion. The chair/discussant
should have read the papers previously (but
this does not always work) and then be able
to summarize all the discussants' papers and
lead a discussion with the audience. She/he
is also chairing and introducing the speakers.
ANSWER 2
There really isn't much difference, from my
perspective. Both need to be conversant with
the topic so that they can lead discussion on
the papers presented. Ideally, the discussant
should receive papers far enough in advance
to be able to prepare some type of response/discussion.
Of course, that only works if those presenting
actually get the papers to the discussant on
time! Occasionally, you also may see panels
that have a chair and a different person as
discussant. Truthfully, that often occurs when
someone needs to be on the program in order
to attend the meeting and did not have anything
ready at the time of the deadline for abstracts.
Of course, that is not always the case, so I
hope I did not step on any toes. Other times,
having a well-known scholar chair a session
enhances its validity so that more people will
attend.
QUESTION 2
When you leave grad school and take that first
"job"....how do you choose which committees
are the best for you to get involved with?
ANSWER 1
The advice I received was very simple - don't
get too involved in committee work right at
first. Instead, find a committee that will not
require too much time commitment. My chair directed
me to that type of committee. My ego wanted
me to get very involved so that everyone would
know me, but looking back, I can see that would
not have been in my best interest. I needed
to concentrate on publishing so that I could
get tenure.
ANSWER 2
The first thing you need to do before deciding
on what committees to participate in is to ensure
that they are worthwhile of your time. Ask your
P&T Committee (or department) which committees
count toward Community Service for promotion
and tenure. Every University rates the different
committees slightly different. Be sure that
you are involved in at least one important committee.
Also, try to participate in committees that
you will enjoy. Many require sub-committee work
and you want to have an opportunity to work
with interesting people on interesting tasks.
If you can participate on committees that are
at least somewhat related to your research/teaching
agenda it would be a valuable networking experience.
Balance your committee work with your obligations
so that it is split in the appropriate "expected"
segments for P&T. Most importantly, don't get
too bogged down with too many committee commitments!
That is deadly to an untenured professor! The
most difficult task for all of us is to find
the balance.
QUESTION 3
As you plan a semester load...taking into consideration
classes, research agenda and service, how do
you gauge how much time to leave open/available
for those new opportunities that spring up unexpectedly?
ANSWER 1
That is really a tough question. It depends
on a lot of things, such as the amount of research
you are expected to produce for tenure, the
number of classes you teach, etc... Plus, it
took me awhile to realize I did not have to
volunteer for everything that came along. Work
on being selective. What fits in best with your
plan? I finally learned to make everything fit
together. My community service, chapters that
I wrote for other people's books, research projects
in which I became involved - all of those things
needed to fit together. When the time came to
prepare my tenure dossier, I had to make the
argument that I had a demonstrable research
agenda and that furthermore, everything I had
done fit into it. So, I learned to say "No"
unless in my mind whatever new project, etc.,
that came up fit my plan. That sounds selfish,
but it was survival. Talk to your chair for
direction. She (or he) should be able to provide
some guidance for you. And, good luck!
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