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Welcome to Leading. We are building a community of higher-ed leaders who share insights and lessons learned. I’m glad you’re here.
What topics are you thinking about, and what would you like to see covered in this newsletter? Send me an idea via email or LinkedIn, where you can also join other leaders in our private group.
Advice from Wayne State’s longtime leader
M. Roy Wilson retired this month, concluding 10 years as president of Wayne State University, in downtown Detroit, and more than 30 years in higher-ed leadership at several public and private institutions.
Wilson has weathered his share of controversies — like in 2019, when his board couldn’t agree as to whether it had fired him — and is also credited for increasing enrollment and lifting the university’s graduation rate to 60 percent from 28 percent a decade ago, with particular gains among historically underrepresented students.
In an interview with The Chronicle, he described just how much top jobs have changed in recent years, specifically because of increased political involvement.
His main advice for new and aspiring leaders is to examine your own moral compass, reflect on your passions, and then seek a job and an institution whose mission and values are a good match. That will make your voice stronger when you speak out, he said, and help you stay confident under pressure.
Also, you need a release. For Wilson, that is cycling, so he regularly made time to log miles on his bike, and incorporate that into his job. The Baroudeur, for example, is a 100-mile bike ride he founded that starts and ends at Wayne State and raises money for scholarships and a program for students facing housing insecurity.
Here are five other reflections he shared.
On knowing what you want. When Wilson, an ophthalmologist, was serving as a deputy director at the National Institutes of Health, he shared with a friend that he missed the cadence of academic life and was thinking of returning. “This time I really know what I want,” he told the friend: Public, because he believed in the mission; high research, with a large medical center, because of his training; and urban, his preference for the potential connections to the community. Six months later he got a call that Wayne State was looking for a president — was he interested?
In a new job, determine who will set you up for success. Consider your strengths and how your staff can complement them. If the aides in place aren’t a good fit, said Wilson, don’t be afraid to replace them. Also, consider hiring an executive coach, he said, because it’s really hard to know who you can confide in, especially at the beginning.
Build good will before you need it. When Wilson became embroiled in the attempt by some board members to fire him, he hung on and ultimately kept his job because he had spent so much time cultivating relationships with different constituencies, he said. “The way the community came together, from grass roots to grass tops, to support me, and go against the members of the board who were acting up was really remarkable,” he said.
When politics intervenes, stick to your values. During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Wilson felt compelled to mandate vaccines on campus, but faced backlash from state lawmakers, whom he said disagreed but ultimately respected his rationale. “If you make the right decisions, half the people are going to be mad with you and half of the people are going to be pleased with you,” he said.
Make time for something that helps you disconnect. In addition to the Baroudeur, he started a statewide cycling tour after Trump won Michigan’s Republican primary in 2016, and he realized he must be out of touch with the rural parts of the state. His response: a four-day bike ride with community events at night. The motto was “Wayne State: only a bicycle ride away.” The event continued annually until 2020.
In brief
Flagship spending unchecked as tuition soars. An investigation into the finances of 50 public flagship universities by The Wall Street Journal found that for decades, many have enjoyed virtually uninhibited spending — rubber-stamped by boards — on glittering new complexes, robust sports programs, and armies of administrators, funding much of that with tuition increases that often outpace state-funding declines. The Journal found that at the median institution, spending rose 38 percent from 2002 to 2022, salaries and benefits increased by 40 percent, and tuition rose $2.40 for every $1 of lost state support.
Glass ceiling for female presidents of color. Three leaders described to The Chronicle the unique challenges and barriers they face in their high-profile jobs. While recent studies have highlighted progress in representation of women in senior roles, they still make up less than a third of college presidents. The trio detailed the higher level of scrutiny and vitriol they’ve encountered, emphasizing the importance of mentorship and noting that many of their best mentors have been white men.
Confidence in the value of a degree highest for community colleges. Americans may not be thrilled with the U.S. higher-education system, but most still believe people need at least some education after high school to ensure financial stability, according to the annual Varying Degrees report released last week by the New America think tank, The Chronicle reports. Eight-five percent said community college is worth the investment, and two-thirds said the same about four-year institutions.
A deep dive into transfer troubles. The difficulty students face when trying to transfer from a two- to a four-year institution has long impeded their success, but it’s hard to identify the factors that need fixing. This in-depth Chronicle piece examines the pitfalls that lead to statistics like this: Eighty percent of community-college students intend to transfer, but only 25 percent ultimately do. Confusing course numbering, misaligned incentives, poor transfer agreements, a lack of advising, and a population of students largely unfamiliar with the higher-ed system all contribute to poor outcomes. It doesn’t have to be this way, the article concludes. Often you don’t need legislative action or statewide articulation agreements, just a group of motivated faculty members.
Moves
E. Gordon Gee, longtime leader and current president of West Virginia University, said last week he plans to leave that position at the end of his contract, in June 2025, and return to teaching at the institution’s law school, The Daily Athenaeum reports.
American University President Sylvia M. Burwell announced last week she plans tostep down in June 2024. A former Obama administration official, Burwell took office in 2017 with little prior experience in higher education.
The humanities are not dying but do need a public-relations boost, say the presidents of four selective institutions in The Boston Globe. The New England leaders are doubling down as they confront enrollment declines in humanities majors and political attacks that the curriculum is too liberal. The story features remarks from Sarah Willie-LeBreton, the new president of Smith College; Maud Mandel, president of Williams College; David Greene, president of Colby College; and Michael Elliott, president of Amherst College.
Laura Krantz is subscriber-products editor at The Chronicle of Higher Education, working to better connect our journalism with our audience. She previously covered higher education and national politics for The Boston Globe. Laura got her start in journalism as a reporter for the MetroWest Daily News in Framingham, Mass., and then at VTDigger, a nonprofit newsroom in Vermont. She has an undergraduate degree from Boston University and is originally from Tampa, Fla. Follow her on Twitter @laurakrantz or get in touch at laura.krantz@chronicle.com.