Despite many testifiers’ pleas to include University of Hawaii faculty, students and staff as well as community members on the selection committee that will choose the next UH system president, the UH Board of Regents opted Thursday to stick with a “committee of the whole” composed exclusively of the 11 regents.
University of Hawai‘i is considering major changes to its tenure system, including limiting tenure to instructional faculty only, tying hires and tenure to enrollment and unit “success,” and involving the administration in posttenure review.
The pandemic, even with all of its devastating effects, has brought out the best in some organizations and its employees.
Pivoting has become the watch word throughout the pandemic. We have seen a number of organizations successfully adapt to new constraints. Organizations that are flexible and innovative have welcomed change instead of wallowing in despair. Many of these entities have rapidly evolved into better, more efficient organizations.
There is another quality inherent in these organizations that is often taken for granted: a commitment to collaboration and joint decision-making. Teamwork and consensus-building, based on a mutual respect of each other’s input are critical to successful change, especially in the face of the pandemic’s challenges.