Disaster in Progress

It's mind boggling. The Illinois state budget deficit even warranted an article in the Wall Street Journal. The economics aside, my concern naturally is for the health of the people of the state. In my work with the local health departments, they are saying that county budgets have been hard hit because the state has not paid for services rendered. No one feels confident that the state will pay its bills, for services given in the past fiscal year, not to mention the current fiscal year.

From the point of view of public health, it feels like an economic disaster for which no preparedness training could help. Many county governments are making some really deep cuts into programs and services most of us have taken for granted for decades. The state funds support mostly health promotion programs and screenings for early detection and prevention. In contrast, federal dollars generally support direct clinical services, like primary care. At least in Illinois, most local health departments have gotten out of the business of providing primary care. Instead, they focus on the health promotion, disease prevention for which reimbursement does not exist.

As the programs are cut because there is no money to pay staff to do the programs, questions arise. What will happen to the health statistics for conditions like sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), breast and cervical cancer, and child abuse? How will health departments reconfigure and reconceptualize themselves in this new economic landscape? What new or old skills are needed by the remaining workforce to actualize this new reality?

I don't worry about those few organizations that are trendsetters, enlightened, prospectors (in the language of Miles and Snow) that can turn this crisis into an opportunity. But, not all organizations have that ability. Those that can't survive or adapt or morph, what will happen to the health of the people they once served?

The New Students

We use room 932 for the presentations of graduating students and faculty meetings. Today the room was filled with incoming MPH students who will be in the Community Health Sciences Division. And, the room was really filled, with eager, if not slightly apprehensive, faces. There were not enough chairs for the faculty to sit at the long parallel tables. So, we stood around the walls in the back of the room, looking a bit awkward.

Each of the 60 or so students gave a name, where they were from and something interesting about themselves. The Midwest states were very well represented, but students also came from both coasts. I don't recall any international students. (The decline in the number of international students corresponds directly with the tightening of granting student visa since 9/11.) Several students are training for marathons. Several like dancing or play a musical instrument. A few were funny. We have identical twin brothers. Some of the students will be taking all of their courses online, making this their only in-person appearance. Most of the students have some international experience either volunteering or studying abroad. Overall, wow, what a group.

For us as faculty, this first in-person introduction to the new students brings a certain satisfaction. We did good to have so many good applicants who want to come to UIC. We feel a renewed optimism about what they can do and how we can work with them. We feel anticipation for their learning curves and we feel confident in our ability to keep the curve at just the right slope. Then, we scurry back to our offices to finish our syllabi.

The Academic Year Begins

At my university, the contracts for faculty begin on August 16. Yep, that's the official start of the academic year and nine months of teaching, research, service, online blurry vision, counseling students, writing till the tips of fingers nearly bleed, and seeing learning actually happening in real-time.

To start the semester, we had the first of our monthly faculty meetings at 9am on Monday. I was a bit surprised at how many faculty did not show up. Granted classes start next week, but our paychecks started today. It was not a particularly inspired meeting. The good news was that the State has learned its lesson that furloughs are more costly than the money saved and so no furloughs this year. The bad news is that we still have staggering State budget deficit and virtually no state money coming to the university. This has forced us  faculty to be much more entrepreneurial, which is definitely an unexpressed recessive gene for most of us.

The rest of the day was taken up with meetings. One to plan grant writing. Another faculty meeting to get synchronized for the year. One to review the changes in the online technology. And, one to go over a grant budget.  Seems like the semester has begun. Now, we just need students. They will be Friday for orientation.

Air of the Gods

One thing has not changed since I first attended the Academy of Management Annual Meeting as a doctoral student. When the intellectual gods are in the room everyone knows it, and breathing the same air raises one's IQ by at least a few points.

I went to a session on the the future of doctoral education. I didn't mind that they were talking about business schools, what mattered was whether they would say anything smart. The panel had big names that filled the room. And, the first panelist acknowledged the presence of Dick Scott and Paul Lawerence. Two gods! The smartest thing I heard was that doctoral education needs to be more connected to the phenomenon and more connected to problems that matter. And, students need to read more, but read deeply. Those issues resonnated with me.

The other session I went to focused on a book "The Real Wealth of Nations: Creating Caring Economics" by Riane Eisler, better known for her first book, "The Challice and the Blade." She gave an empassioned plea and argument for shifting toward a partnership hierarchy in economics. It all made perfect sense, which was confirmed by the economist on the panel. The other panelists included Jane Dutton and Peter Senge. Again, two gods! I had not heard Peter before and was impressed with his near clairvoyance on issues. It ended with me wanting much much more.

This is the life of an academic, the good life, the stimulating life.

Legacy Plannning

Legacy planning is not an ego thing; it's a responsibility. It goes hand-in-hand with mentoring and keeping the discipline alive and fresh.

I spent this afternoon with a group of senior faculty, junior faculty, and doctoral students all participating in a Professional Development Workshop sponsored by the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management. It's my annual early August conference where I get to meet up with my once-a-year friends.

The panel I moderated topic focused on "Publishing". Four of us Editors of journals provided tips on how to get pushed. Nuts and bolts information. I organized my comments by 4 audiences (editor, reviewers, readers and publishers) and doing your homework. I noticed lots of note taking while I was presenting. After our presentations we broke into small group discussions and had informal sharing across the levels of expertise.

We all have stories and experiences that can enrich each other's understanding. Although the competition to get published is fierce, the collegial support generally and predominantly trumps all.  It might be that we, those with experience, are hoping to spare others of the pains and steer them clear of time sinks. Or, maybe we feel a responsibility to make the next generation even better than we were. Or, maybe there's some perverse competition about who can be more helpful. It doesn't matter.

After a coffe break, we had small group sharing of our hopes and fears related to our work. Those in my group, again the full range from senior faculty to doctoral studens, were delightfully honest. The elephants got noticed. We laughted. One thread to the sharing ran like this: how do I know which path to take? how will I find good collaborators?  The answers included "have faith" and "trust yourself".  Two answers that we tend to forget, even though we were taught these answers since we were children. As we concluded, the consensus was that the workshop made the next generation feel valued and supported. Yes, I do love my intellectual children and grandchildren. And, those facing the academe or not choice began to see and experience some of the upsides to this astoundingly autonomous, interesting, and challenging life.