The demands of the job of an academic chair are varied, numerous, and often frustrating and unrewarding. Long-term chairs, those with 5 to 20 years of experience, usually work through a period of deciding whether to resign or attempt renewal. Since the continuity and commitment of a long-term chair can be a valuable asset for an institution, encouraging renewal is a worthy staff development investment for a college. Departmental chair renewal begins by examining the three roles that a chair plays: academic, managerial, and leadership. Academically, chairpersons must keep abreast of developments in their discipline, fulfill their roles as faculty members, and encourage the use of new teaching methodologies to improve learning. As managers, chairs must attend to such time-consuming tasks as creating schedules, staffing classes, and hiring and supervising faculty. As leaders, chairs are expected to motivate a department and provide a vision for the future. The danger for chairpersons lies in the fact that the number and urgency of managerial tasks often leaves little time to address leadership and academic function. Chair renewal can be regarded as a three-step process: (1) reflective self-examination, in which chairs assess their values and the various attributes of their position; (2) evaluating the institutional commitment to departmental chairs; and (3) making decisions and taking action. (MAB)