Faculty called on to help develop Purdue initiatives

The Office of the Provost will host a town hall meeting at 4-5 p.m. Nov. 7 in Stewart Center, Room 279, to discuss findings of three faculty work groups that have been delving into the Purdue COACHE survey responses.

"In response to the 2015 survey, our faculty expressed their views on a range of work-life issues," says Peter Hollenbeck, vice provost for faculty affairs. "Because the data set was large and complex, we went back to faculty for guidance in pinpointing which issues were most important and to get ideas about how to improve."

The town hall, to which all faculty have been invited, will be moderated by Jessica Huber, professor of speech, language, and hearing sciences, and provost fellow for faculty affairs working on the COACHE program. "We asked three faculty work groups to examine the COACHE responses, including 15 Purdue custom questions, and to develop recommendations," Huber says. "Now we want to hear from the rest of our faculty colleagues to find out how the ideas hold up and to see if we missed anything."

Teams of associate-level, women and underrepresented minority faculty will share their insights and recommendations in these areas:

* How does Purdue improve communication, transparency and fairness at the department level?

* How does Purdue improve recognition for the contributions of associate-level faculty and clarify the process for promotion to full professor?

* How does Purdue increase opportunities for recognition and advancement of women and underrepresented minorities and promote inclusion of women and underrepresented minorities in decision-making across the university without increasing their workloads?

Faculty are encouraged to join the discussion to help develop future Purdue initiatives. A survey will be distributed after the town hall to gather additional input.

Purdue first participated in the COACHE faculty work-life survey in 2012, which led to several positive outcomes. In January 2015, faculty participated in the second COACHE survey with a 54 percent response rate.  

The forum will be webcast live; the link will be provided one week before the event.

Source: Jessica Huber, jhuber@purdue.edu