Q. How do you determine what these task forces should do?
For example, we would have a task force on academic programs, and the charge would be to look at what people really want out of their careers these days. What are they anticipating that they want out of college? That research is very important.
If you’re not doing that research, you may be designing a curriculum they have no interest in. Then, they’ll go somewhere else.
I would dare to say that many universities and colleges in the past have taken the attitude that we know what they need to learn; that’s what they’re going to get when they come here. That worked for quite a long time.
But with the way information flows these days, even sophisticated faculty are seeing their jobs differently than ever before because they recognize that they have to continue learning at almost the same pace their students are in order to become effective teachers and leaders.
So we are all in a learning institution; we are all learning and trying to keep up and trying to think ahead, so when we design a curricula, we’ve designed it to be flexible for constant change and adaptation to the needs.
Q. What do you do with the input you get from the task force?
The steering committee would receive those reports. Usually, one or more members of the task force not only hands the report over in writing but verbally walks the task force through it, so there is clear understanding of what the document is.
It’s always in the form of a recommendation. Everybody understands that going in. They are making recommendations based on what they’ve found.
For instance, a recommendation could possibly be something the institute decides not to do, based on a number of choices that may come before us. But if the task force has really done its job, it will probably be solid information that would be very helpful to move on. That’s why you do these things.
How to reach: The Cleveland Institute of Art, (216) 421-7000 or www.cia.edu
