Designing Dispute Resolution For Educational Institutions: Listening Is Key

You are an associate professor at an esteemed college, which you always thought of as your dream job. Of late, however, you feel as though you are spending less time doing what you came here to do. Instead, you can barely keep your head above water as the administration continually adds new courses and responsibilities to your post. As a result, you are feeling demoralized and stretched thin. You know your colleagues are feeling the same way. When you raise the issue at faculty meetings with the administration, your concerns are swept under the rug. Clearly, the institution is more concerned with the budget than the well-being of its most important resource—faculty members.

You are an administrator at a large, well-respected university where expenses are mounting and enrollment is declining. Recently, you're spending little time on the educational mission that drew you to the institution. Instead, you are tirelessly working to resolve the inevitable tensions created