Your Career: What to Do to Stem the Skipping

Class attendance went off a cliff last year. How can you reverse the trend? ADVERTISEMENT [Your Career Logo]( Did someone forward you this newsletter? [Sign up free]( to receive your own copy. Class attendance went off a cliff last year. How can you reverse the trend? Last spring witnessed a “‘[stunning’ level of student disconnection]( in college classrooms. Plenty of professors found themselves speaking to a lot of empty seats, and many worried that their students had checked out. With a new semester underway, it’s a good time to think about how to keep your students enrolled and engaged. Students — much like their instructors — have been in transition from pandemic isolation to a time of more freedom. And the change is not like flipping a switch. It’s more like coming out of a dark cave into sunlight; it takes a while for your eyes to adjust. By restoring some guardrails, you can help students adapt, and maybe help yourself, too. For example: - A required-attendance policy helps students get to class (although they don’t like to admit it). Taking attendance is an especially good idea for first-year students who are fresh out of high school and accustomed to accountability. - The possibility of making new friends inspires some students to come to class. During remote learning, they couldn’t make friends in a physical classroom. The return of in-person teaching last year restored that opportunity. Take advantage of it by devoting some class periods to peer-critique sessions or small-group activities that help students connect. Continue reading: “[Why Students Are Skipping Class So Often, and How to Bring Them Back]( by Carol E. Holstead Share your suggestions for the newsletter with Denise Magner, an editor at The Chronicle, at denise.magner@chronicle.com. If you’d like to opt out, you can log in to our website and [manage your newsletter preferences here](. ADVERTISEMENT SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHRONICLE Enjoying the newsletter? [Subscribe today]( for unlimited access to essential news, analysis, and advice. Latest Career Advice, Opinion, and News THE REVIEW | ESSAY [You’ve Burned Out. Now What?]( By Rebecca Pope-Ruark [STORY IMAGE]( Academe’s competitive productivity is a dead end. ADVERTISEMENT ADVICE [3 Practical Approaches to Writing While Teaching]( By Rebecca Schuman [STORY IMAGE]( Here’s how to make time for your manuscript during the academic year. THE REVIEW | REPORTING [Why Faculty of Color Are Leaving Academe]( By Joshua Doležal [STORY IMAGE]( Too many find themselves disenfranchised, exhausted, and isolated. 'FOCUSING ON PEOPLE, NOT ON NUMBERS' [What Colleges Can Learn From the Affirmative-Action Lawsuit Against Texas A&M]( By Marcela Rodrigues-Sherley [STORY IMAGE]( The university hoped for a diverse faculty. It got a legal action instead. ADVICE [When Building a Diverse Leadership, Emphasize Culture, Not Quotas]( By Alexander C. Kafka [STORY IMAGE]( Colleges have many tools to create an inclusive campus culture, among them equity audits and job-specific, anti-bias education. Shaming and blaming don’t help. THE EROSION OF TENURE [Emporia State University Is Told It Can Fire Employees, Including Tenured Professors]( By Emma Pettit [STORY IMAGE]( Low enrollment, restructuring, and performance evaluations are among the many reasons they can be terminated. LEADERSHIP [‘Just Despicable’: Michigan State Professors Oppose Attempt to Oust President]( By Grace Mayer [STORY IMAGE]( Nearly two weeks after university trustees reportedly told Samuel J. Stanley Jr. to resign or be fired, his status remains unclear. FROM THE CHRONICLE STORE [Building a Faculty That Flourishes]( [Building a Faculty That Flourishes]( Colleges and universities cannot be successful without vibrant and engaged faculties. Now is the time to figure out sustainable ways to recruit, support, and diversify the faculty. [Order your copy today.]( What we’re reading. Here’s more on career issues and trends from around the web. See something we should include? [Let me know](mailto:denise.magner@chronicle.com?subject=Your Career feedback). - In the Harvard Business Review, [four strategies]( that can “backfire when dealing with a difficult colleague.” - A [new program]( at the University of Iowa offers faculty and staff members voluntary online training that simulates real-life conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion. - On The Biblioracle [substack]( advice on how to make sure your personal reading time “is spent on books you enjoy.” More Career Resources [Innovative Financial Aid for Today’s Students]( [STORY IMAGE]( UPCOMING: September 29, 2022 | 2 p.m. ET: Almost half of college students will drop out over the cost of their education. What financial-aid strategies can colleges use to keep them on track to graduate? Join us to discuss this issue with policy experts and higher-ed leaders. With Support From UIA. [Register here.]( DATA [How Much Has Noninstructional-Employee Pay Changed Over Time?]( [STORY IMAGE]( A sector-by-sector look at changes in average annual pay for workers in noninstructional jobs from 2012-13 to 2020-21. [Managing Up]( By Carolyn Dever [STORY IMAGE]( Carolyn Dever tackles how managing up is a challenge for all department chairs, and how to navigate these difficulties, providing pro tips on how to approach your dean or provost. Video provided by [Dever Justice LLC](. THE WORK FORCE [These Are the Higher-Ed Jobs Being Refilled at the Highest Rates]( By Audrey Williams June [STORY IMAGE]( Event planners, institutional researchers, and campus-museum directors were among the employees refilling campus jobs at the highest rates. JOB OPPORTUNITIES [School of Humanities Faculty Openings]( Rice University School of Humanities [Faculty Openings]( Evergreen State College [Assistant or Associate Professor of Social Work]( Rutgers University-Newark [Department of Management and Global Business Open Rank Professor of Professional Practice]( Rutgers University [Merrimack College Seeks Open Rank Faculty in Various Disciplines]( Merrimack College [Assistant Professor in Chinese Language and Culture]( Massachusetts Institute of Technology [Faculty in Native American Studies]( Massachusetts Institute of Technology [FACULTY POSITIONS IN STRATEGY]( Northwestern University [The School of Education and Human Development at Texas A&M University Faculty Openings]( Texas A&M University [Faculty Positions 2023-24]( Christopher Newport University [Search other jobs.]( NEWSLETTER FEEDBACK [Please let us know what you thought of today's newsletter in this three-question survey](. This newsletter was sent to {EMAIL}. [Read this newsletter on the web](. [Manage]( your newsletter preferences, [stop receiving]( this email, or [view]( our privacy policy. © 2022 [The Chronicle of Higher Education]( 1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037