In response to a newly appointed department chair’s question about faculty retreats, Kevin Dettmar shares advice on how to successfully run one of these perennial events. Dettmar outlines the pragmatic reasons why some faculty members strongly dislike faculty retreats: namely that many have experienced retreats that were badly planned, poorly run, and/or inconveniently scheduled. Building off of this, Dettmar offers tips for avoiding these missteps and designing more successful retreats, including by taking the retreat off campus to a new location, organizing the retreat into modular units, and covering topics that would not typically be covered during department meetings.
Chronicle of Higher Ed (Acct Req)
