Career and Advancement: Provost’s Leadership Academy
What is the Provost’s Leadership Academy?
The PLA is an opportunity for WSU Leadership to recognize early- and mid-career faculty who show promise as leaders and are positive role models in their colleges or campuses. The PLA provides faculty with a training program that helps faculty develop self-awareness, confidence, and leadership skills, expand their network within Washington State University, connect with University leaders, and build knowledge of the University and the challenges facing higher education more broadly.
What can participants expect?
Participants will experience a high-quality program led by skilled leadership training professionals and experienced university administrators. Program activities will be delivered in highly interactive, engagement-based online and face-to-face sessions. Participants will increase self-awareness, develop an understanding of value-based leadership, improve conflict resolution skills, and build their professional network.
What is the commitment?
The program begins with a mandatory 2-day retreat at Ross Point Camp in Post Falls, ID, in October, followed by regular sessions over the course of the Fall and Spring semesters. These sessions are interspersed with three online modules that introduce important leadership topics and allow participants to engage in related experiential activities to practice skill development with peer mentors. Activities are designed to support participants in executing a leadership project that they designed specifically for this program (see below). Attendance and active engagement in sessions are important for success.
What is the leadership project?
During the PLA each participant is required to work on a project that involves the practice of leadership. The project must involve influencing others to achieve a specific goal.
How is the leadership project chosen?
Administrative mentors (e.g., Deans, Chancellors, or Department Chairs) work with PLA participants to identify a mutually agreeable leadership project.
This collaboration provides a valuable opportunity for mentorship, as participants engage with leaders to design a project that is meaningful to their unit. It is important that participants identify their administrative mentors at the time of nomination and that the nominee and mentor are committed to identifying a suitable project together. Past projects have included negotiating strategic plans, developing and getting approval for new academic programs, spearheading new policies and procedures for evaluating graduate students, developing review processes for career-track faculty, and reorganizing a department.
Who pays for the program?
The Provost’s Office covers expenses for the retreat, online instruction, and the sessions.
Who should participate in PLA?
Candidates must be faculty (either tenured/tenure-track or career-track). It is recommended that the participants have at least three years at WSU and no more than a few years beyond promotion to associate professor rank. The purpose of the program is to recognize and build the next generation of University leaders. A nomination to the PLA is not a guarantee of promotion, but a recognition of potential by the nominators.
Questions?
Please contact Kristina Peterson-Wilson (Vice Provost for Academic Administration & Chief of Staff) at kpeterson2@wsu.edu or (509) 335-5581.