VII. Faculty Voice on Campus
Characteristics
of the Unit 6 Head (Q 22)
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22)
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Faculty generally perceived their unit head to demonstrate integrity (83% agree), to show respect for them (80% agree), and to have adequate fiscal resource management skills (75% agree). They were less likely to agree that their unit head is an effective fundraiser (59% agree) or has adequate human resource management skills (63%). (See Table 27 ) |
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Differences by School
The survey did not ask respondents to identify their home department, because the researchers believed that this would compromise anonymity. Therefore, analysis for this question is available only at the school level.
Education faculty were less satisfied than average with their unit heads’ fiscal resource management skills, human resource management skills, respect for faculty, fundraising skills, and the extent to which they seek and use faculty input. Library faculty were also generally less satisfied than average with their unit heads, specifically with regard to human resource management skills, respect shown for faculty, communication with faculty, and the extent to which faculty input is sought and used. They were, however, more satisfied than average with their unit heads’ fiscal resource management skills and effectiveness as fundraisers.
The Veterinary Medicine faculty is a third group that was less satisfied than average with several characteristics of their unit heads. In this case, they were less likely than average to agree that their unit heads have adequate fiscal and human resource management skills, that they communicate sufficiently with faculty, and that they are effective fundraisers. Veterinary Medicine faculty, were, however, more satisfied than average with their unit heads’ respect for faculty and with the integrity that their unit heads demonstrate.
Consumer and Family Sciences and Science faculty, on the other hand, were more satisfied than average with their unit heads on a number of factors. CFS faculty were more likely than most to agree that their heads have adequate fiscal and human resource management skills, that they seek input from faculty in decision-making, and that they are effective fundraisers. Science faculty were more likely than most to report that their unit heads show respect for faculty, communicate sufficiently with them, seek input from faculty, and use this input in decision-making. They were, however, less likely than average to report that their unit heads are effective fundraisers.
Differences by Rank
In answering each of these eight questions, assistant professors were consistently the most likely to agree that their unit head demonstrated these characteristics or skills while associate professors were the least likely to agree. In some cases the differences were minimal (e.g., has adequate fiscal resource management skills and demonstrates integrity), but in most cases the differences were noteworthy. For example, 87% of assistant professors agreed that their unit head shows respect for faculty compared to 79% of professors and 75% of associate professors. Also, 77% of assistant professors believed that their unit head seeks input from faculty in decision-making, compared to 71% of professors and only 63% of associate professors.
Differences by Gender
Males were considerably more likely than females to agree with each of the statements about their unit head, except their effectiveness as a fundraiser, where males and females responded similarly (60% of males compared to 57% of females agreed). The average difference between males’ and females’ rate of agreement with the remaining seven questions was 11 percentage points. The most significant difference reflects males’ and females’ views about their unit head’s human resource management skills, which 67% of males agreed are adequate compared to 51% of females.
Differences by Race
Asian Americans were less likely than the others to agree that their unit head has adequate human resource management skills (58% compared to 70% of underrepresented minorities and 63% of Caucasians) and that he or she utilizes faculty input in decision-making (56% compared to 86% of underrepresented minorities and 64% of Caucasians). Underrepresented minorities, as these figures show, were the most likely to agree with these statements about their unit head, as well as to agree that he or she shows respect for faculty (96% vs. 83% of Asian Americans and 80% of Caucasians). They are, however, less likely than the others to agree that their unit head communicates sufficiently with faculty (58% vs. 69% of Asian Americans and 65% of Caucasians) and that he or she is an effective fundraiser (39% vs. 63% of Asian Americans and 59% of Caucasians).
Caucasians, for their part, are the least likely to agree that their unit head demonstrates integrity (83% vs. 89% of Asian Americans and 91% of underrepresented minorities).
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6 At the beginning of the survey, respondents were told that “unit” was defined as “your academic home, most often a department. In schools without departments, such as Nursing and Engineering, this is your school.”
