Generational perceptions of promotion and tenure expectations by faculty in a striving university: A quest for legitimacy?

Striving universities seek to gain prestige in the academic market. One characteristic of striving universities is a change in the faculty reward system. In this study, we examined historical promotion and tenure criteria in five disciplinary units at one striving university and then conducted interviews with senior faculty and recently tenured faculty in each unit to better understand the striving dynamics at play. Findings demonstrated that pressures to seek legitimacy were a result of the faculty themselves, the institution’s desire to gain legitimacy through an increased research profile and the disciplinary ties outside the university.     

Students’ Attitudes Toward Gene Technology: Deconstructing a Construct

Journal of Science Education and Technology - Emergent technologies are commonly characterized as involving cutting-edge developments while lacking wide-scale public implementation. Although...     

Requests for proposals for library automation

Many health sciences libraries are now considering integrated automated systems for an investment of several hundred thousand dollars. The request for proposals (RFPs) is the usual method of selecting candidate vendors for close inspection of promising systems. This paper draws upon the experience of the Library of Rush University and that of twelve other health sciences libraries. The libraries were interviewed by telephone using a short questionnaire that asked them to compare the RFPs with the systems actually obtained and their experiences in implementing them. The libraries were also asked, with the benefit of hindsight, what would they have done differently. Four vendors were also interviewed by telephone, in order to get their point of view.     

Trends and Tensions in IT Policy in Universities

This paper charts developments in information technology policy in British universities from the creation of the Computer Board for Universities and Research Councils to the present day. Focusing on institutional issues, the various organizational tensions are examined in the context of quasi-collegial policy formulation and management. The impact of operational tensions, arising from a variety of external and internal influences on the implementation of policy, is similarly assessed. The paper concludes with an outline of likely future trends.