The Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) created a Small Teaching Challenge, leveraging department chairpersons to encourage faculty adoption of evidence-based, small teaching practices. Inspired by James Lang's "Small Teaching" (2016) and previous collaborations with department…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the lived experiences of department chairs who participated in leadership training to determine if it added value in preparing them to be effective in their role. More specifically, the study focused on department chairs who attended the Department Chair Workshop hosted by the Institute for Academic…

A relatively small number of research articles have been written about one of the most challenging positions in higher education, that of a department chair. Chairs must wear many hats and assume many tasks including management and oversight, budget and financial management, teaching, research, working with students and faculty, evaluations,…

The University of Central Florida's First-Year Composition Program has sustained its commitment to values-based sustainable development despite a series of significant changes from 2020-2025. In this program profile, we offer four elements of sustainability--social justice, collective action, sociocultural empiricism, and strategic planning--that…

This study examines what forms of data school leaders use, how they matter for students' learning, and which school contexts matter for such leadership practices to succeed. Utilizing hierarchical linear modeling, we analyzed survey responses from 1,381 school leaders and administrative data from 269 Florida schools. We find that although school…

Investigation of leadership styles and emotional intelligence (EI) factors have on job satisfaction could help address leadership issues within community college leadership teams. The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental study was to determine what effective leadership styles, in conjunction with level of EI, have in relation to job…

Competency-based education (CBE) refers to online and hybrid courses and programs that offer credit or degrees based on evidence of student learning, or competencies, rather than on the amount of time spent in a course. Students work at their own pace, receive personalized academic support, and demonstrate mastery as they progress through their…

Federal and state guidelines for school reform dominate the landscape of public education. Florida and its school districts, as a Race to the Top state, are in the process of fully implementing a value-added model of teacher evaluation. Effective school leaders are calling upon the theoretical framework of transformational, visionary and…

This exploratory study of department chairs, deans, and faculty at extensive research public universities in Florida resulted in the identification of 85 future competencies of department chairs using a human resources perspective. Results include a discussion of the top 20 most important competencies and the top 20 competencies anticipated to be…

Locally controlled public schools are one of the cornerstones of our nation's democracy, yet many schools are not preparing students for success. Far too many students are not graduating, and many of those who do graduate are woefully unprepared for college or a meaningful career. Successfully initiating and sustaining meaningful improvements in…

A survey examined and compared employment of males and females in athletic and physical education positions in Florida public high schools during pre- and post-Title IX years. Employment analyses included athletic directors, coaches, physical education teachers, and chairpersons. Results showed no significant gains for females in these areas. (JMK)

Factors reported to be important in the design, implementation, and evaluation of professional development programs for department chairs are described. Attention is also directed to results from a goal-focused evaluation of the 6-year-old program to train new department heads in the nine state universities of Florida, a program that is being…

The design and results of a program evaluation of the Department Chairpersons Project in Florida are examined. The objective of the 1982 project was to design and test a model for planned change in higher education using Florida's university chairs. After presenting the history of the project, the following major project goals are described:…

Three types of surveys were developed to obtain specific recommendations from key educational personnel for improving preservice teacher education programs. Deans, directors, and chairpersons of Florida teacher education programs provided profiles of faculty and students; the institution's standards for admission, selection, and retention of…

Eight collective bargaining agreements between the boards of trustees of selected community colleges in Florida and their respective faculty associations are presented, representing contracts in effect in 1987. Contracts for the following colleges are provided: Brevard Community College, Broward Community College, Chipola Junior College, Edison…