Purpose: As educators across the globe are tasked with taking teaching online, this paper shares a culture-centered approach to transitioning to education at a distance. Specifically, in this essay, a focus is placed on how one school preserved their collaborative culture among administrators, teachers and staff. The purpose of this paper is to…

Much of the conversation in recent years about how to attract and retain high-quality teachers has focused on salaries--how much teachers are paid, the possibilities of differentiated pay scales, and pay for performance. But it has become increasingly clear that teachers take much more than salary into account when tallying up working conditions.…

The potential of advancing information and telecommunications technology to transform the workplace in higher education is examined. Demographic, social, and economic trends contributing to this trend and its advantages and disadvantages are also discussed. Suggestions are made for managing the transition to telework, including selection of…

School leaders who recognize the differing needs of baby boomers and Generation X can create an organization where all employees are working from their strengths. Successful personnel leaders provide boomers with lots of public recognition and opportunities for input, while letting X-ers know that their ideas will be evaluated on merit, not on…

Public schools are unique environments where the rights and responsibilities of one individual or group can easily, if unintentionally, infringe on the rights and responsibilities of other individuals or groups. This can leave public school employees wondering about the nature and scope of their rights. While it is well established that public…

A combination of economic and societal stresses contributes to workplace violence in higher education. College human resources professionals must become knowledgeable about its causes, implications, prevention, and appropriate responses. A three-tiered plan includes a preventive program, threat-management plan and team, and crisis management team.…

This article suggests ways to develop individual employees' capabilities to minimize the negative effects of workplace stress in higher education, particularly that caused by organizational change. It is argued that early action to prepare employees for change is more beneficial to individuals and the institution than treating dysfunctional…

An overview is presented of social and demographic trends prompting changes in workforce composition and workers' values, and a conceptual model for understanding these changes and their effects on the work environment is offered. The Ohio State University's shared approach to managing the work/family overlap and its policy implications are…

Colleges and universities should place less emphasis on the leadership of one or a few individual administrators and concentrate on creating a culture of leadership that will empower all members of the institution. The human resource development program at Boston College (Massachusetts) exemplifies the dynamic possibilities of leadership…

Disabilities and illnesses are becoming an increasing problem for all employers. To understand the problems unique to schools, 76 elementary and middle school principals were surveyed and indepth interviews were conducted with over a dozen of them. Nearly 70 percent reported that, over the past 2 years, they had between 1 and 5 teachers absent for…

In an era of rapid technological advancement and an economy in transition, colleges and universities must struggle to keep up with change. College human resource personnel will be instrumental in helping employees cope with technological challenges and increase productivity, and this will require taking a long-range perspective of personnel…

Discusses the legal phenomenon of negligent hiring, what it is, how it has evolved, and where it will probably go. Lists ways to avoid a negligent-hiring lawsuit and provides 12 steps for reducing negligent hiring and defamation lawsuits. (MLF)

Connecticut State University has achieved success in recruiting and retaining information technology (IT) workers through six strategies: modifying the administrative structure to make positions and salaries more attractive; grooming students for IT positions; promoting benefits of university employment; transferring state civil-service employees;…

This essay reviews quality of work life as a management technique and argues that quality-of-work-life programs, conceptualized multidimensionally, offer a unique mechanism for improving working conditions in schools and within districts. A brief analysis of major management ideologies concludes that some techniques advocated under the label of…

The promotion of employee assistance programs (EAP) in higher education is considered in 24 chapters, with an emphasis on enhancing resources and the academic environment for faculty and staff. Seven topical areas are addressed: history of EAP; characteristics of higher education; alcoholism and other risks in the academic life-style; EAP models…