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"This book is full of both wisdom and practical advice not found in other books on deanship, but coming from the experience of a mega-school dean with input from fellow deans, about making your vision clear, operating from an ethical stance, navigating rumors, politics and power, building a team, self-care under stress, working for a better good, and having the courage to act in spite of mistakes and missteps. This is an engaging and uplifting book, written by an experienced dean who pulls back the curtain on this crucial and complicated role. A compelling account, it brings together real world stories that often go unspoken, along with relevant scholarship, to uncover the potential of how to both be effective and to thrive. The portrait of the dean is presented as a vision of a thoughtful activist whose leadership is defined by careful consideration of the responsibilities of this position and ethical responses to it all. Several of the themes woven throughout the book are staying authentic, having courage, and remaining fair. It is written with a sense of humor-a quality most desirable as a dean. The chapters are brief and accessible because it is a "go to" resource combining knowledge, common sense advice and reminders of what brings people to that role in the first place. This is an essential resource for all individuals who are thinking about being in or who currently are in a leadership position. Learning from the past but presenting a contemporary view of how to be an effective leader, it takes the accompanying stress in stride, while acknowledging the rapidly changing context of higher education"--
About the author
Mari Koerner is the Alice Wiley Snell Professor of Education and former dean at Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University.
Summary
What does leadership and change actually look like in myriad situations? This "boots-on-the-ground" resource, written by a former dean of education, pulls back the curtain on the crucial and complicated role of senior leadership and brings to the forefront experiences that often go unspoken.
