New Paradigms in Graduate Education
January 2013
email: NewParadigmsASTR@gmail.com
If you have suggestions for sources or would like to work with the committee,
please email us at NewParadigmsASTR@gmail.com.
REPORT on the Conference on Doctoral Programs in Theatre and Performance
Studies at UT-Austin, February 1-3, 2013:
This “January” mailing is coming to everyone a few days into February so that it
could include a report on the Conference on Doctoral Programs in Theatre and
Performance Studies held at the University of Texas-Austin from February 1-3,
2013. Many thanks are due to Charlotte Canning and Andrew Carlson for
coordinating this event. Special thanks are also due to Brant Pope, Head of the
Department of Theatre at UT-Austin, for sponsoring the gathering.
The conference opened on the afternoon of February 1, with a panel entitled,
“Performance Scholarship in other PhD Programs.” It featured three panelists
from departments outside theatre, including: Dr. Janet Davis (American Studies),
Dr. Matt Richardson (English), and Dr. Deborah Paredez (English). The speakers
addressed their engagements, intersections, and interventions with performance,
performativity, and theatre, and spoke about their own “learning curves” in
developing interdisciplinary approaches to their work.
The panel sparked a lively discussion about the opportunities and challenges
interdisciplinary work offers in academic settings not traditionally designed to
recognize these kinds of boundary-crossing collaborations or intellectual
adventures. One of the conference participants spoke “in praise of a crowded
space” – creating environments that not only fostered, but to some extent,
mandated interdisciplinary collaboration. Another participant described a project
at her home institution through which faculty members in different units devoted a
year to reading and discussing seminal texts in each other’s disciplines. Other
participants recommended collecting syllabi from colleagues’ methods courses and
using them as the foundation for “Keyword” faculty seminars or shared reading
lists.
On the morning of February 2, Catherine Cole (UC-Berkeley) gave a keynote talk
entitled “Picturing and Performing the City of Intellect.” She described her recent
venture into curating and mounting an exhibit that chronicled the relationship
between Clark Kerr (former UC-system president and author of The Uses of the
University) and famed photographer Ansel Adams. Adams had been
commissioned to create a chronicle of the UC-system’s expansion shortly before
Kerr’s sudden dismissal at the hands of Governor Ronald Reagan. For Cole,
exploring Adams’s photographs of the various UC campuses then under
development offered a springboard into a larger discussion about faculty members’
responsibilities as stewards of their institutions.
Cole also spoke about how her work in developing the project underscored the
need to create “multiplatform scholarship.” She described how her engagement
with some of Berkeley’s recent controversies has pointed her towards emergent
fields such as “critical university studies.” (For more information on the latter, see:
http://chronicle.com/article/An-Emerging-Field-Deconstructs/130791/)
After the morning keynote, the conference shifted into several break-out sessions
that focused on the following topics: “Graduate Training and Placement,”
“Curriculum and Evaluation,” and “Institutional Advocacy.” These sessions
allowed colleagues from doctoral programs across the country opportunities to
brainstorm, discuss challenges, and share best practices.
More information about these discussions will be forthcoming over the next
several weeks, and they will inform the ongoing work of the consortium.
CONTENTS for January 2013:
What guides and resources are already out there that colleagues across ASTR
can use to guide their own careers or to help colleagues or students?
Hopefully the list below will offer some useful starting points.
RESOURCES for Performing Arts Collections/Archival Research:
Spring often brings deadlines for research fellowships. Colleagues may find the
following links helpful in planning future research trips/applications to both U.S.
and international performing arts collections and institutions.
 http://www.tla-online.org/links/libraries.html
 http://www.theatrelibrary.org/sibmas/idpac/
Mentoring Toolkit (created by the Southern Association for Women Historians).
This online “toolkit” features 33 separate documents/handouts, including the
following topics: adjunct teaching; dual career couples; juggling family and career;
how to find mentors; time management; surviving the ABD period.
 http://www.h-net.org/~sawh/Toolkit/
Some may be interested in the book, “So What Are You Going to Do with
That?”: Finding Careers Outside Academia (by Susan Basalla and Maggie
Debelius – also included in the book list below)
 http://www.careersforphds.com/ (Note that this website also invites
colleagues to share their stories of work experiences beyond the academy at
phdfeedback@yahoo.com.)
Benchmarking: The Council of Graduate Schools has prepared a variety of
resources to “help member institutions to assess performance in key areas, make
informed decisions, and develop plans that are suited to their goals.”
 http://www.cgsnet.org/benchmarking
Proceedings from the December 2012 Meeting of the Council of Graduate
Schools are now posted online at: http://www.cgsnet.org/2012-cgs-52ndannual-meeting-presentations.
Reports include the following topics:
Fundraising as a Critical Instrument for Improving Graduate Education
Assessment and Review of Graduate Programs - Doctoral
Assessment and Review of Graduate Programs - Master's
Technology Solutions for Tracking Student Progress
How to Be an Effective Consultant in Graduate Education
Graduate Schools' Role in Financial Aid
Mentoring through the Back Door: Creating Campus Buy-In for Graduate Student Career
and Professional Development by Offering Diverse Opportunities
Promising Strategies and Techniques for Broadening Participation in Graduate Education
Assessing Learning Outcomes in Online Graduate Education
Career Outcomes for Graduate Degree Holders: How Do We Track?
Advances in Models Supporting Graduate Students and Excellence in Graduate
Education
Dynamic Graduate School Leadership
Financial Support for Master's Students
Perceptions of Deans and Students about Graduate Education and Career Opportunities:
A Further Analysis of Pathways Through Graduate School and Into Careers
Innovations in Master's Education
Graduate Student Debt: Issues and Implications
Professional Development Programs
Preparing Graduate Students for a Global Workforce
New Frontiers in Interdisciplinary Education
Building Community at Master's Focused Institutions
Creative Solutions to Budgetary Challenges
Joint and Dual Degree Programs: Planning for Success
GENERAL WEBSITES & USEFUL LINKS FOR STUDENTS AND FACULTY IN
MA/PhD PROGRAMS
SEE: Council of Graduate Schools website: http://www.cgsnet.org/. This site offers a wide
range of reports, data, and links to workshop/training opportunities.
(Many of these titles below came from materials compiled by the GSC. Thanks to them for all
their hard work in gathering these resources. We welcome your suggestions for other useful
websites that should be added to this list.) Note that some of the basic informational site links
(1-5) are repeats from previous mailings.
1.
http://chronicle.com/section/Home/ (The Chronicle of Higher Education home page)
2.
http://chronicle.com/section/Almanac-of-Higher-Education/536/ (If you need program
data to support a proposal for your academic unit, this is a state-by-state guide created by The
Chronicle that offers data on a range of topics from diversity to faculty salaries to technology in
the classroom)
3.
“PhinisheD,” http://www.phinished.org/. (This site offers discussion boards and forums
for graduate students trying to finish their dissertations. Ideal for those in small departments who
may lack built-in support systems of other graduate students.)
4.
Spencer Hall, “Resources for Graduate Students and Post-Docs”,
http://www.indiana.edu/~halllab/grad_resources.html. (This compilation of resources is geared
toward scientists, but much of the advice remains relevant for those pursuing graduate degrees in
the arts and humanities.)
5.
“Grad Resources,” http://www.gradresources.org/index.html. (This is a faith-based
support network for graduate students.)
6.
“Examining Pathways through Graduate Education and Into Careers,” from the Council
of Graduate Schools: http://www.cgsnet.org/examining-career-pathways-graduate-students
BOOKS & ARTICLES:
(The works below are on topics including job searches, the future of doctoral programs, career
planning, and academic advising. We welcome your suggestions for additional items that should
appear in this list.) Note that some items on job-hunting have been repeated for those who may
have missed the listings in previous mailings.
Confronting Challenges to the Liberal Arts Curriculum: Perspectives of Developing and
Transitional Countries, edited by Patti McGill Peterson (Routledge; 242 pages; $150 hardcover,
$46.95 paperback). Writings on influences on curricular content in institutions in China, India,
Mexico, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, South Africa, and Turkey.
Decades of Chaos and Revolution: Showdowns for College Presidents, by Stephen J. Nelson
(American Council on Education/Rowman & Littlefield; 194 pages; $65). Focuses on two
periods—the 1960s through mid-70s and the first decade of the 21st century—and their
challenges, including mass protests, the "culture wars," and financial crisis.
Enhancing Minority Student Retention and Academic Performance: What We Can Learn From
Program Evaluations, by Jacqueline Fleming (Jossey-Bass; 400 pages; $45). Identifies factors
and institutional characteristics critical to the college performance of minority students.
Fundraising Strategies for Community Colleges: The Definitive Guide for Advancement, by
Steve Klingaman (Council for Advancement and Support of Education/Stylus Publishing; 301
pages; $85 hardcover, $35.95 paperback). Offers a step-by-step guide on how community
colleges can apply the development principles of four-year institutions; topics include building a
foundation board, the blueprint for an annual fund, closing on major gifts, and enlisting the
faculty in fund raising.
How to Succeed in College (While Really Trying): A Professor's Inside Advice, by Jon B. Gould
(University of Chicago Press; 168 pages; $42 hardcover, $14 paperback). Discusses choosing
courses and majors, getting the most from classes, taking exams, and writing papers.
Paying the Professoriate: A Global Comparison of Compensation and Contracts, edited by Philip
G. Altbach and others (Routledge; 368 pages; $160 hardcover, $52.95 paperback). Writings that
compare faculty remuneration and terms of employment across public, private, research, and
non-research universities in Australia, Brazil, Britain, China, Germany, India, Nigeria, Saudi
Arabia, the United States, and 19 other countries.
Public No More: A New Path to Excellence for America's Public Universities, by Gary C. Fethke
and Andrew J. Policano (Stanford University Press; 265 pages; $45). Examines the future for
public research universities given the erosion of state support and other challenges; draws on the
authors' experience as deans of business schools to develop a strategic framework for
determining tuition, access, and programs.
Transformative Learning Through Engagement: Student Affairs Practice as Experiential
Pedagogy, by Jane Fried and associates (Stylus Publishing; 200 pages; $75 hardcover, $29.95
paperback). Considers the role of student-affairs professionals in helping students learn.
Unlikely Allies in the Academy: Women of Color and White Women in Conversation, edited by
Karen L. Dace (Routledge; 197 pages; $140 hardcover, $35.95 paperback). Essays by Chicana,
indigenous, Asian-American, African-American, and white academics.
•
Barnes, Sandra L. On the Market: Strategies for a Successful Job Search. Lynne Rienner
Publishing, 2007.
•
Hume, Kathryn. Surviving Your Academic Job Hunt: Advice for Humanities Ph.Ds.
Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
•
Vick, Julia Miller and Furlong, Jennifer S. The Academic Job Search Handbook: Fourth
Edition. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008.
•
Semenza, Gregory Colón. Graduate Study for the 21st Century: How to Build an
Academic Career in the Humanities. Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
•
Marotte, Mary Ruth, Paige Reynolds, and Ralph Savarese, eds. Papa, PhD: Essays on
Fatherhood by Men in the Academy. Rutgers UP, 2010.
•
Connell, Rachel & Ghodsee, Kristen. Professor Mommy: Finding Work-Family Balance
in Academia. Rowan & Littlefield, 2011.
•
Perlmutter, David D. Promotion and Tenure Confidential. Harvard UP, 2010.
•
Wildavsky, Ben, & Kelly, Andrew, & Carey, Kevin. Reinventing Higher Education: The
Promise of Innovation. Harvard Education Press, 2011.
•
Arum, Richard & Roksa, Josipa. Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College
Campuses. University of Chicago Press, 2011.
•
Alboher, Marci. One Person/Multiple Careers: A New Model for Work/Life Success.
Business Plus, 2007.
•
Barker, Caroline. Careers with an Arts or Humanities Degree. Lifetime Careers, 2010.
•
Basalla, Susan Elizabeth, and Maggie Debelius. “So What Are You Going to Do with
That?” Finding Careers Outside Academia. U of Chicago P, 2007.