Department Chairs
Department chairs have a wide array of responsibilities that involve navigating faculty and administrative priorities and interests. The role of the department chair is complex and broadly involves leadership, management and mentoring responsibilities. Faculty Affairs supports an orientation for new department chairs and a monthly series for all department chairs, which began in fall 2023, to further their professional and leadership development and connect with other department leaders to build relationships and further develop practical strategies to provide effective departmental leadership.
Department Chair Monthly Forum Series
The Department Chair Forum Series is aligned with the various roles and responsibilities of department chairs and embeds opportunities to address topics initiated by current chairs. See below for details on upcoming and past forums.
Fall 2024-Spring 2025
Fall 2024
- The Role of Department Chairs in Creating a Healthy Workplace Culture | September 9, 10:00-11:30am
This session focuses on specific strategies and actions department chairs can use to promote a healthy department culture. The session builds on foundational ideas of psychological safety and includes practical and case examples to illustrate how administrators can foster belongingness and productive collaboration within their departments.
Suzanne Milton, Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer - VCU to Participate in COACHE Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey Through Harvard | October 21, 10:00-11:00am
This monthly forum will provide department chairs with an overview of the COACHE faculty survey.
Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs - Understanding the Graduate Faculty Mentor/Student Compact | November 13, 10:00-11:00am
Jeff Wilson, Associate Dean, The Graduate School
Fall 2023-Spring 2024
Spring 2024
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Opportunities & Resources: Scholarship Opportunities with the National Scholarship Office and Approaches to Managing Conflict with the VCU Ombudsperson | January 24, 10:30-11:30amThis session will have two presentations: one by the National Scholarship Office about their office and the scholarship opportunities available to faculty and students. The second presentation will be by the University Ombudsperson, focusing on approaches to managing conflict.
Jeff Wing, Director of the National Scholarship Office; William E. King, University Ombudsperson - Chair Cafe | February 28, 11:00am-12:15pm
The Chair's Cafe is an opportunity to come together to network and share experiences. We will listen and learn from each other about accomplishments, concerns, experiences, and positive actions taken. Please come to the session with 1-2 topics, questions, concerns you would like to discuss.
Fall 2023
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Meet the Provost Leadership Team | September 21, 11:00am-12:00pmThis session is designed to learn about the various functions within the Office of the Provost to support your success, engage in mutually beneficial discussions, and cultivate stronger partnerships.
Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs; William Nelson, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Administration and Operations; Andrew T. Arroyo, Interim Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; Hernan Bucheli, Vice President for Strategic Enrollment Management, and Student Success; Aaron J. Hart, Vice President for Student Affairs -
Appreciative Leadership & Creating a Culture of Belonging and Inclusion | September 27, 10:30am-12:00pmAppreciative Leadership is a collaborative and rigorous approach to fostering employee engagement and wellbeing. During this session we will explore how we might use Appreciative Leadership practices to facilitate a culture of belonging and inclusion. | Sponsored by ADVANCE VCU Council of Chairs
Amy J. Armstrong, Associate Dean of Faculty, College of Health Professions; Darcy Mays, Professor, Department of Statistical Sciences and Operations Research, College of Humanities and Sciences -
Teaching, Learning, and Academic Regulations | October 3, 2:00-3:00pmThis session will discuss the role chair’s play with monitoring and discussing the basic requirements for teaching, syllabus development, textbook selection, and evaluation policies.
Andrew T. Arroyo, Interim Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; William Nelson, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Administration and Operations - Chair Cafe | October 31, 11:30am-1:00pm
The Chair's Cafe is an opportunity to come together to network and share experiences. We will listen and learn from each other about accomplishments, concerns, experiences, and positive actions taken. Please come to the session with 1-2 topics, questions, concerns you would like to discuss. -
Using a Coaching Approach to Support Faculty Development | November 15, 10:30am-12:00pmJoin this engaging and interactive session to learn how to apply basic strengths-based coaching principles to foster career growth, expertise, and goal attainment for your faculty. | Sponsored by ADVANCE VCU Council of ChairsJean Bailey, Associate Dean for Faculty Development; Stacey Wahl, Senior Instructional Designer
New Department Chair Orientation
Beginning in the fall of 2023, Faculty Affairs provides new department chairs with an introduction to the chair role. The orientation includes an overview of leadership responsibilities and highlights general strategies with the aim of positioning chairs for success in their new role. The orientation reviews institutional policies essential to the chair role and how chairs support the institution’s mission and goals. The orientation includes interactive opportunities to consider practical issues in the chair’s daily work with faculty, students and administrators. See below for details on upcoming and past New Department Chair Orientation.
Fall 2024 Orientation
Orientation was held on August 1 from 8:30am-3:00pm. Session details are below:
- Welcome and opening remarks
Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs; Fotis Sotiropoulos, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs - The Roles and Responsibilities of the Chair
This session introduces you to the many facets of the department chair role and how these roles shift in emphasis over the course of the academic year.
Lisa Abrams, Interim Assistant Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs; Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs - Promoting a Culture of Care and Well-being
Department chairs have an active role in promoting a culture of care and well-being in their units to foster an environment in which all employees can thrive. This session features how department chairs can encourage well-being, mindfulness and mitigate stress among faculty and staff. Information about VCU resources available to support employee health will be distributed.
Anika Hines, Assistant Professor, Health Policy, School of Public Health; Shawn Utsey, Professor & Chair, African American Studies, College of Humanities and Sciences - Navigating Your New Role, Relationships and Expectations
This session is designed to provide guidance to new department chairs and strategies for success in year one. A panel of current department chairs and deans will offer recommendations and suggestions for how chairs can develop positive and productive relationships with faculty. We will also discuss how being the chair impacts relationships with faculty, strategies for engaging faculty in the unit and university mission, and suggestions for navigating the dual responsibilities of department advocacy and carrying out unit goals and initiatives.
Moderator: Lisa Abrams, Interim Assistant Vice Provost of Faculty Affairs | Panelists: Alisa Brink, Professor & Chair, Accounting, School of Business; Azim Eskandarian, Alice T. and William H. Goodwin Jr. Dean, College of Engineering; Les Harrison, Associate Professor & Chair, English, College of Humanities and Sciences; Carmenita Higginbotham, Dean, School of the Arts; Patrick Mullen, Associate Professor & Chair, Counseling and Special Education, School of Education
Fall 2023 Orientation
Orientation was held on August 15 from 8:15am-12:20pm and August 23 from 11:30am-3:50pm. Session details are below:
- Welcome and opening remarks
Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs; Fotis Sotiropoulos, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs; Michael Rao, President - Supporting faculty and the operational academic enterprise
This session will provide an overview of the role, responsibilities, and resources available through the Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and the Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Administration and Operations. The goal is to assist in understanding the functions of the offices and how each can support your role.
William Nelson, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Administration and Operations; Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs - Supporting academic and student success
This session will provide an overview of the role, responsibilities, and resources available through the Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs. The goal is to assist in understanding the functions of the offices and how each can support your role.
Andrew T. Arroyo, Interim Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; Aaron J. Hart, Vice President for Student Affairs; Erin Webster Garrett, Associate Vice Provost for Relevant, Experiential, and Applied Learning - Promoting a culture of health and wellness
Suzanne Weaver, Employee Health - The “new” balance: Navigating relationships, roles, and expectations
This session is designed to provide guidance on the transition from faculty to chair and how that impacts your relationship with faculty, your role as both advocate for the department and implementer of the dean’s requests, and creating a productive and open environment.
Jill Gordon, Assistant Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs; Tracey Gendron, Gerontology; Preetam Ghosh, Computer Science; D’Arcy Mays, Institutional Research and Decision Support - The good, the bad, the practical: Legal guidance for department chairs
New chairs are faced with many unknowns, this session will provide helpful guidance on when and how to document, notify your supervisor, or engage with legal counsel. Guidance will be provided on the “do’s and don’ts”, communication strategies, and the role of the office and who oversees what types of concerns.
Jake Belue, Associate University Counsel; Kristen Calleja, Associate University Counsel and Senior Assistant Attorney General - What’s the threshold? Why does equity, access, and compliance matter?
It is important for department chairs to recognize the role they have in shaping a positive culture of respect, acceptance, and accountability regardless of one’s position within the unit. There are likely to be disagreements and conflicts from time to time. This session will discuss ways to promote an open working environment, strategies to handle conflict, and demystify the thresholds required for a complaint to be substantiated in two key offices.
Cleopatra Magwaro, Associate Vice President of Equity and Access Services; Suzanne Milton, Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer - Fostering ’belongingness’ in the workplace
This interactive session will discuss a focus on ‘belongingness.’ Doing the ‘work’ of belongingness intentionally can build community, foster the success of faculty, staff, and students, and facilitate retention.
Mangala Subramaniam, Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs
President Rao addressing audience at New Department Chair Orientation, August 2023.