AAG Joins in Support for Faculty Rights
On Tuesday, January 26, AAG sent a letter to the Chancellor of the University of Kansas, asking him not to act on the recent Kansas Board of Regents' decision to allow the suspension and termination of university employees, including tenured faculty, without formally declaring a financial emergency. Chancellor Girod recognized our letter and thoughtfully acknowledged…
Advocate for Geography in Austerity – Part 2
This is Part 2 of a two-part column on what geography departments can do (and should not do) to advocate for their work in budget talks, which are all the more crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic. These points are largely derived from answers I received from geographers in upper administrative positions at universities. As I…
Advocate for Geography in Austerity
This is Part 1 of a two-part column on what geography departments can do (and should not do) to advocate for their work in budget talks, which are all the more crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic. These points are largely derived from answers I received from geographers in upper administrative positions at universities. At the…
Survival in a Time of Disruption in Higher Education
This is a challenging time to be engaged in scholarship in higher education. Shrinking state budgets and rising tuition raise concerns about the affordability—and importance—of college. Support for scholarly organizations such as the Illinois State Museum are threatened in budget battles (and the update). Skepticism by some members of Congress about the value of social…