Department Chair's Companion

Kevin Dettmar is the W. M. Keck Professor of English and director of The Humanities Studio at Pomona College. He is the author of The Illicit Joyce of Postmodernism: Reading Against the Grain and Gang of Four's "Entertainment!" in Bloomsbury's 33 1/3 series and is a contributor to the New Yorker and the Atlantic.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgementsRead This First!1. The "Good Enough" ChairHow to Prepare for the RolePassing the TorchBut What If You're Not a Good Enough Chair?The Post-Spring Break JuggernautWrite a Department Handbook2. Faculty Hiring, Support, and DevelopmentThe Chair's Role in Fostering a More Humane Job MarketBe an Unabashed Advocate for Your FinalistHow to Welcome a New HireGetting Junior Colleagues Across the Finish Line3. Building, Maintaining, and Repairing Department CultureHow to Cope with the Service SlackersService Slackers: A ParableAggressive Aggression and Passive AggressionHow to Organize a Useful RetreatKeeping Secrets4. Leading During ChangePlugging Holes in Your FacultyBrokering a Generational StalemateLeading Under a Double Existential ThreatIs It My Job to Find My Replacement?How to Cope with a Death in Your Department5. Leading from the MiddleDon't Forget That You're a Faculty Member—Sort of; Not an Administrator, Really.Congratulations! Now You're a BossWhen Did I Become a Bureaucrat?Chairs Oversee a Class System. And Are Usually Not Very Happy About It.How to Cope with a Lone-Wolf DeanShould You Stay or Should You Go?6. Chair: A Person or a Role?How Do I Start Training for the Role?How Can I Prepare Mentally While Waiting to Assume the Role?Three Styles of Leadership Failure...And Other Duties as AssignedA Chair Is Not a Throne7. Care and Feeding of the ChairShould I Apply to Lead Another Department?Chairing for All the Wrong ReasonsShould I Apply for a Deanship to Support My Department?Who Do I Turn to for Advice?How Do I Stay Productive in My Field?Is Chairing Really a Thankless Job?Appendix A: How to Create a Department HandbookAppendix B: The Department Chair in Popular MediaAppendix C: What's Your Chair Style?