PUTTING PROFESSORS BACK IN THE CLASSROOM
 The
“publish-or-perish” pressure on professors to produce works of scholarship
may be undermining education, warns the American Enterprise Institute.
Scholarly publishing is growing (despite unimpressive sales trends at
academic presses), while undergraduate performance is declining.
According to AEI’s report “Professors on the Production Line, Students On
Their Own” by Mark Bauerlein of Emory University, tenure review requires
that professors bulk up their CVs with publishing credentials but makes no
demands on class time. As young scholars consider academic careers, their
eyes turn toward research rather than teaching.
The
report, which focuses on trends in literature and the humanities, recommends
that donors and foundations earmark more of their funds for undergraduate
teaching activities rather than research, and that universities make hiring
decisions based on teaching proficiency rather than research expertise.
SOURCE:
American Enterprise Institute, Education Policy Studies
SEE
ALSO: “Professors on the Production Line, Students on Their Own” by Mark
Bauerlein,
AEI Future of Education Project working paper:
TOP CITIES WITH ENERGY-EFFICIENT BUILDINGS
When
we think of energy efficiency, we usually focus on building better cars or
making transportation systems more efficient. But what about building better
buildings?
“Energy use in commercial buildings and manufacturing plants accounts for
nearly half of total U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions and nearly half of energy
consumption nationwide,” reports the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
To
shine a spotlight on cities that have improved the efficiency of their
commercial and public buildings, the EPA has awarded “Energy Stars” to metro
areas that have reduced greenhouse-gas emissions by 35% and use 35% less
energy. The top 10 for 2008 are Los Angeles; San Francisco; Houston;
Washington, D.C.; Dallas–Fort Worth; Chicago; Denver; Minneapolis–St. Paul;
Atlanta; and Seattle.
SOURCE:
Energy Star program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
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MENDOZA COLLEGE OF
BUSINESS
SPECIAL
PROFESSIONAL FACULTY
The Mendoza College
of Business at the University of Notre Dame invites applications for a
Special Professional Faculty position for the 2009-2010 academic year for
its required junior-level course: Foresight in Business and Society. This
futures course explores business and societal trends, foresight techniques,
research methods for forecasting the future, and intervention strategies,
especially those focused on sustainability. Additionally, the course
requires students to complete a comprehensive research study and paper. More
details on the course are available at:
http://business.nd.edu/future/
.
Candidates for the
Special Professional Faculty position may have backgrounds in a wide range
of fields and disciplines. A master’s degree or higher is required, with a
Ph.D. preferred. The ideal candidate will have some combination of
educational, professional, and/or teaching experience in business, foresight
and futuring techniques, and related research and/or teaching experience.
The employment contract is renewable and the salary is competitive.
Applicants should
submit a cover letter, vita, references and a teaching portfolio which
provides evidence of quality teaching. Materials should be sent to:
Professor Tom
Frecka
Special Professional Faculty—Futures Studies Course
204 Mendoza College
of Businesss
University of Notre
Dame, IN 46556-0399
Applications will
be accepted until April 1, 2009.
The University of
Notre Dame is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer with a
strong commitment to fostering a culturally diverse environment for faculty,
staff, and students. Women, minorities, and those attracted to a university
with a Catholic identity are encouraged to apply. Information about Notre
Dame, including our mission statement is available at
http://www.nd.edu .
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REINING IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT
In the United
States, a new local government is born every day. More public institutions
may not be a bad thing if people’s views are being represented and needs
being served. However, Americans in certain jurisdictions may be
overgoverned to the point that their economic and personal freedom is in
peril, charges a new study from George Mason University’s Mercatus Center.
The study ranked
the 50 U.S. states on fiscal and regulatory policy and on “paternalism,”
covering such issues as gambling, alcohol, smoking in public areas, and
doctor-assisted suicides. The freest states were Colorado, New Hampshire,
Texas, South Dakota, and Idaho, while the least-free were New York, New
Jersey, Rhode Island, Maryland, and California.
Even more
governance thrives beyond the state level: There are now nearly 90,000 local
governments in the United States, according to the Goldwater Institute’s
Center for Constitutional Government.
The Center
recommends that new local governments focus on ensuring freedom for citizens
by providing protections from abusive regulations. The Center recommends
that cities enact a Local Liberty Charter guaranteeing basic citizen rights,
such as presumption of liberty, use and enjoyment of property, freedom from
crime, fiscally responsible government, and freedom from favoritism.
SOURCES:
Mercatus Center, George Mason University
Goldwater Institute, Center for Constitutional Government
|
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN AT
WORLDFUTURE 2009 !!!
What
are some of the big stories that will be coming out of the World Future
Society’s conference in July
- Millennium Node leaders from China, India, Russia, South
Africa, Mexico, Argentina, Germany, and Korea will offer their unique points
of view on the worldwide financial crisis and how we may solve it and other
global challenges.
- Can
marketers alleviate poverty? Absolutely, says Northwestern University
business professor Philip Kotler. He will show how the tools of social
marketing—such as behavioral modification, communications strategies, and
incentives—can help communities and individuals break out of the vicious
cycles of poverty.
-
Technology policy analyst Robert D. Atkinson will tell how,
after 5,000 years
of human progress, the digital information revolution is finally enabling
the transformation from an inert and obtuse world to an intelligent one that
is alive with information.
-
Business-trend consultant Edward Gordon
will
explore solutions to the draining talent pool and tell how businesses,
educators, government officials, and others are crafting new
education-to-employment systems for the technology-based economy of the
twenty-first century.
These stories and many
more await you at WorldFuture 2009: Innovation and Creativity in a Complex
World, to be held July 17-19 in Chicago.
SAVE $100! REGISTER BY APRIL 30:
DOWNLOAD LATEST
BROCHURE:
MAKE YOUR RESERVATION
AT THE HILTON CHICAGO:
WHY CHICAGO? Watch
"Chicago: Greatest Admirers," our tribute to a great city
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES:
Forward-looking organizations and individuals receive high-profile exposure
at World Future Society conferences.
MORE AT 2009
CONFERENCE HEADQUARTERS: Get details on confirmed speakers, such as
keynoters Edward Gordon, Kevin Fickenscher, James L. Koch, Arthur Caplan,
Barry Kellman, John Challenger, and more!
|
CLICK OF THE MONTH: ECONOMIC TURNING POINT
www.economicturningpoint.com
Web
2.0’s networking powers to the rescue? Economic Turning Point is a
“nonpartisan global think tank” inviting everyone from homeowners to
politicians to disseminate ideas and information and to participate in
creating solutions to the global economic crisis.
“We
are facing a dramatic restructuring of our economy,” says Edward Thompson,
one of the site’s administrators. The goal of bringing all stakeholders
together in a nonpartisan forum is to find ways to create a new economy that
avoids the problems of the old.
Among the topics recently under discussion are peak oil, the housing crisis,
and IT support for the health industry.
“ETP
welcomes people from all political persuasions,” says Thompson.
“Nonetheless, we will not tolerate stubborn ideology. All ideas are welcome
on our Web site; partisan politicking and finger-pointing are not. We are,
first and foremost, solution-oriented.”
|
THE OXFORD
SCENARIOS PROGRAMME – Strategic options for success, May 2009
In today’s uncertain business
climate, the Oxford Scenarios Programme
identifies the critical
drivers of changes that are shaping our wider context
and, as a consequence, your strategic options for success. Within
this all-inclusive four day programme you construct systems diagrams
and story maps to describe and understand plausible alternative
scenarios which will test your specific decisions, assess the robustness of
your organisation and your future strategic plans.
See
www.sbs.oxford.edu/scenarios or email
mailto:scenarios@sbs.ox.ac.uk
£4,750 ex VAT, Saïd Business
School, University of Oxford. |
NEWS
FOR THE FUTURIST COMMUNITY
* CONFRONTING
UNTOUCHABILITY: The first “World Conference on Untouchability” will be held
in London June 9-10, organized by the International Humanist and Ethical
Union. Social exclusion based on the class into which a person is born
persists in Bangladesh, Burma, India, Japan, Korea, Nepal, Nigeria,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Yemen, and elsewhere, according to the organization.
The practice limits educational and economic opportunities. The conference
aims to bring together social activists from around the world to share
strategies for ending untouchability.
DETAILS:
* CORRECTION: In
the online version of the March Community News item “FUTURES STUDIES ON
PERSIAN BBC,” we incorrectly identified the on-camera interviewer as
futurist Vahid V. Motlagh. In fact, Motlagh’s interview with BBC Persian
Television was conducted by telephone, and he did not appear on camera. We
apologize for the misunderstanding.
“The diverse youth
audience of the program,” Motlagh explains, “were interested to know what is
the impact of futures studies in our personal life. The mere focus on times
ahead of us will give us in itself ‘hope’ in spite of all disappointing
facts that may surround us today, because through futures studies we find
out that there will be a lot of alternative potentials on the horizon, which
in turn help us become more patient.” For more information,
visit Motlagh’s Web site.
****************************************************
What"s Hot @WFS.ORG
* TWEETS FROM THE
YEAR 2030, the Twitter site of THE FUTURIST magazine. Check out THE
FUTURIST
home page
for
up-to-the-minute news from 2020, 2030, 2050, and beyond
or sign up to follow us on
Twitter.
* 3-FOR-2 SPRING
SALE! The World Future Society has announced a special membership deal for
both Regular Membership and Professional Membership: Join (or renew) at the
regular price for two years and get your third year free! Plan ahead, save
money, and never miss a single issue of THE FUTURIST (or WORLD FUTURE REVIEW
for Professionals). This one-time offer expires on April 30.
SAVE NOW:
* DELIVER THE
FUTURE TO YOUR CLIENTS: Professional and Institutional Members are invited
to add regular WFS memberships to their package of deliverables to clients
($47 per year each, after the first membership of $59).
ORDER:
You may also offer
your clients, colleagues, and others discounted registrations for
WorldFuture 2009. If you are already a member (or if you join with your
registration), add as many names as you wish to your own conference
registration form, and everyone in your group will receive the members’
discount.
REGISTER: or call 1-800-989-8274 for
assistance.
* ENDING THE
FINANCIAL LOSING STREAK: Futurist and financial analyst Bob Chernow says
that Americans need to stop playing the economic-crisis blame game and get
back to creatively solving real problems. Americans “see adversity as
opportunity,” he writes in his Global Strategies Forum essay.
“We shine when
adversity hits us. We get up when we stumble.” See “How Can We End America’s
Losing Streak?”
* HURRY!
HIGH-SCHOOL-STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST deadline for submissions is March 31! The
World Future Society is seeking essays from students on how you are using futuring skills to take charge of your future. First-prize winner will
receive a three-year membership in the World Future Society and free
admission to WorldFuture 2009, the Society’s annual meeting, to be held in
Chicago July 17-19.
DETAILS:
FUTURIST UPDATE: News & Previews from the World Future Society is an e-mail
newsletter published monthly as a supplement to THE FUTURIST magazine.
Copyright © 2008, World Future Society, 7910 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 450,
Bethesda, MD 20814, USA. Telephone 1-301-656-8274; e-mail
mailto:info@wfs.org
Web site www.wfs.org
mailto: info@wfs.org ; Web
site http://www.wfs.org .
Editor: Cindy Wagner,
mailto:cwagner@wfs.org
Senior Editor: Patrick
Tucker, mailto:ptucker@wfs.org
Network Administrator: Jeff
Cornish, mailto:jcornish@wfs.org
Vice President,
Membership/Conference Operations: Susan Echard,
mailto: sechard@wfs.org
To subscribe, enter your
e-mail at
http://www.wfs.org/futuristupdate.htm
To unsubscribe or change
your e-mail address, send an e-mail to
jcornish@wfs.org with "unsubscribe" or "change
address" in the subject line.
Submit feedback: to
cwagner@wfs.org
The WORLD FUTURE SOCIETY is a nonprofit, nonpartisan scientific and
educational association with a global membership. Regular membership in the
Society, including a subscription to THE FUTURIST, is $59 per year, or $20
for full-time students under age 25. Professional and Institutional
membership programs are also offered; contact Society headquarters for
details: http://www.wfs.org .
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