Mark Kurlansky’s The Last Fish Tale: the fate of the Atlantic and survival in Gloucester, America’s oldest fishing port and most original town is not a particularly good book. Written without great care and poorly thought through, the book teases with the engaging anecdote and arresting observation, but disappoints when it comes to more substantive…
Category: Deanspeak
Posts about the wide realm of higher education from a deanly perspective
What We Are and What Our Children Eat
Food is no longer just food. It is a statement, a value, a marker and a signifier. Food has political value and it is freighted with meaning. What we eat, and what are children eat, is no simple matter. Stepping beyond the perspective of a father encouraging his children to consider a balanced plate, what…
Zeitoun: What’s the Solution?
Dave Eggers’ Zeitoun is an award-winning work of narrative non-fiction. Lauded enthusiastically and critically acclaimed, Zeitoun chronicles the life of Abdulrahman and Kathy Zeitoun before, during and after Hurricane Katrina. Written in a economical style, akin to dramatic journalism, the book unfolds gracefully, pulling the reader into a Job-like story. The Zeitouns ran a successful…
Change and Trust in Higher Education
In recent years the need for change in higher education has become a recurrent refrain. Institutions need to change, faculty need to change, curricula need to change – and recognition of this is widely shared within and outside of the academy. The world and our students are changing at a rapid pace. Higher education, to…
Commencing a Rethink
Late spring the season higher education celebrates and sends forth its graduates, usually with pomp, circumstance and oration. The commencement address, often given by an honorary degree recipient and friend of the institution, figures prominently in this ritual. It has long been a fixture of academia, with commencement addresses taking place in the United States…
No Escaping the Real World
Ask a group of traditional college students – late teens and early twenties in age, seeking the baccalaureate and living in a residential hall/dormitory – what higher education is preparing them for and they will shout out the response in unison: “The Real World!” They are not talking about MTV, either. Their belief that the…
Making Higher Education Relevant
The past few months have witnessed a proliferation of important news, from the earthquake and its aftermath in Japan, to the explosion of democracy in the Middle East, to the massive restructuring of the world economy. These are events worthy of historical study. Exciting and important things are taking place on a massive scale around…