Spring programs at Butler Center: What is, what can be

Opportunities to learn, share and act regarding work climate and equitable career pathways will abound in the spring schedule of Purdue’s Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence. From programs dealing with bias and power to the Fourth Annual Conference for Associate Professors, the center is calling attention to what is happening and what can happen.

As a solid core of faculty support programs continues, the center plans a Work-Climate Series with three feature events beginning Feb. 7. In addition, the Lead by Example lecture series will continue, bringing a speaker who has modeled how women leaders can succeed. Workshops, an International Women’s Day talk and lunch, and the Distinguished Women Scholars reception help round out the schedule.

“Our goal is to offer panel sessions, workshops, and long-term initiatives that contribute to the success of faculty, staff, and students. I hope all campus constituencies will utilize the resources we are offering to fulfill the center’s mission,” says Mangala Subramaniam, professor and director of the Butler Center.

The mission of the center is to develop leadership capacity through research, education and collaborations that helps advance and broaden representation in academic decision making.

The Work-Climate Series arises from both longtime concerns and the extraordinary circumstances of the past two years. The series will offer the following, each in Dauch Alumni Center:

• Feb. 7 — “Culturally Relevant Leadership: Practices to Support Faculty of Color.” 3-4:30 p.m.
• Feb. 15 — “Managing Adversity: Two Purdue scholars share their experiences navigating life during a crisis and across borders.” Noon-1:30 p.m. (Co-presented with the center’s Support Circle program.)
• April 1 — “Enabling Equitable Allocation of Service and Teaching: Sharing from an exercise in progress.” 3-4:30 p.m.

Speakers and moderators for these and other events are listed on the Butler Center website along with other information. A registration link for each event will be announced in Purdue Today and sent out to the center’s email list about 10 days in advance.

Event attendees will be required to adhere to Protect Purdue Guidelines. No exceptions will be permitted. Recordings will not be available for this semester’s sessions.

This year’s Conference for Associate Professors will develop the theme “Charting Your Path to Promotion,” opening at 11:30 a.m. Feb. 23 in Purdue Memorial Union’s South Ballroom. The conference will run that Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning (Feb. 24), featuring a keynote and two panels, “Managing Time: Service, Teaching, Mentoring, and Research” and “Promotion to Full Professor.” The keynote will be by Elizabeth Field Hendrey, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, Queens College, CUNY.

The semester schedule also offers two dates when the center’s Women’s Exchange Network-Uncensored will hold a WEN-U Lunch/Breakfast. The dates are Feb. 11 and April 6. Also, a collaborative ACE-WN-IN virtual conference April 22 will be presented by ACE Women’s Network of Indiana.

In the background of all these gathered events, the Butler Center will continue with programs providing one-on-one and small group support. These efforts take place through the Coaching and Resource Network (CRN) and the Support Circle. The Women’s Global Health Institute co-leads the Support Circle.