AAG Department Leadership Workshop
"Promoting Diversity in Geography: Strategies to Improve Inclusion, Broaden Participation, and Assess Actions"
June 13-16, 2012, Boulder, CO
You are invited to the 9th annual workshop devoted to strengthening departmental leadership across the discipline. The workshop is for all geographers interested in improving their programs--chairs, deans, associate chairs, academic advisers, provosts and other administrators, as well as all faculty interested in leadership issues. The workshop is particularly well suited for individuals who may soon assume leadership positions.
The main workshop sessions will begin with a dinner/reception at 7 pm on Wednesday, June 13 and end on the morning of Saturday, June 16 (ending at 11:45 am). For those wishing to stay over until Sunday, 17 June a free fieldtrip will be available into the Rocky Mountains on the afternoon of 16 June. Participants will stay in the historic Hotel Boulderado, a beautiful national landmark property one block from Boulder's Pearl Street pedestrian mall.
This Year's Theme
The theme of the workshop will be: "Promoting Diversity in Geography: Strategies to Improve Inclusion, Broaden Participation, and Assess Actions." The focus will be on sharing practices that help advisors, program coordinators, chairs, and interested faculty to develop, expand, or plan for diversity initiatives. Diversity will be considered broadly to include gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, (dis)abilities, and other dimensions of inclusion. Topics will include recruitment and retention of undergraduates, graduates, and faculty who are underrepresented in the discipline or in the institutions of the participants. Participants will share experiences in developing and implementing departmental diversity plans, integrating diversity goals within strategic plans, and incorporating diversity into program assessments.
Funding Support is Available for Participants from Minority Serving Institutions
Participants from geography programs or departments, geographers in other disciplinary departments, or "stand-alone" geographers from Minority Serving Institutions may request funding to cover registration, travel, and lodging. Interested eligible workshop attendees from these institutions should contact Dr. Patricia Solís at psolis@aag.org and provide full contact information with details of their intent to attend the department leadership workshop. Support comes from the AAG's ALIGNED Project funded by the National Science Foundation.
Other Workshop Topics
In addition to those on the workshop theme, some sessions will focus on other important topics including:
- Conflict resolution & difficult communication
- Strengthening preparation for students moving into careers in business, government, and non-profit organizations
- Strategies for strengthening undergraduate and graduate programs
Time will also be set aside for participants to share and discuss their own concerns and experiences. One of the most important elements of the workshop is the opportunity it affords all participants to learn from and network with new and experienced leaders and administrators.
Participants will also have an opportunity to meet and share some meals with early career faculty attending the Geography Faculty Development Alliance workshop being held in Boulder in the same week.
White Papers Invited!
Participants will be invited, if they wish, to share their strategies and perspectives in very brief 1-5 page white papers which will be circulated before and during the workshop. The white papers will help everyone gain more from the workshop discussions and will, as possible, serve as the basis for developing articles or other publications around the workshop themes.
Program Committee
With the help of past participants and leaders, the program and schedule for the workshop is being developed by Ken Foote (U of Colorado), former department head and AAG past president; J.W. Harrington, Jr. (U of Washington at Tacoma), vice-chancellor for academic affairs; Michael Solem, AAG director of educational affairs, Patricia Solís, AAG Director of Director of Outreach and Strategic Initiatives and PI, the ALIGNED Project; and principal investigator on the EDGE project; and Antoinette WinklerPrins (Michigan State University) and director, NSF Geography and Spatial Sciences Program.
Cost, Registration, Accommodation and Travel
Workshop cost is $275 and will include workshop materials, instructor expenses, field trip expenses, and attendee meals.
Participants will stay at the Hotel Boulderado where the University of Colorado has negotiated a room rate of $179* per night for the workshop. This same discounted room rate may be extended both 3 days prior to and 3 days after the workshop should you wish to arrive early or stay longer in Boulder. The hotel will hold this low rate until May 15, 2012. Please make your reservation by then by calling (800) 433-4344, emailing reservations@boulderado.com or visiting http://www.boulderado.com/. Mention that you are with the CU Geography workshop (Booking I.D. Number 8377) to qualify for the reduced rate. Other hotels and accommodations are available for those trying to keep expenses even lower. Please contact Ken Foote if you would like to share a room with another attendee, and he will coordinate the arrangements. Meetings will take place both at the Hotel Boulderado and the University of Colorado.
Boulder is a beautiful college town at the foot of the scenic Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The town is served by an excellent system of hike and bike trails leading from downtown to many local mountain parks and open spaces. The Denver regional bus system links Boulder directly to Denver International Airport and downtown Denver. So, if you are traveling by air, you can fly directly to Denver and then take either a Denver RTD "AB" bus or an airport shuttle to the Boulderado. Visitor information is available from www.bouldercoloradousa.com, www.explore-rocky.com, and www.colorado.com.
If you have questions about the workshop program, please contact Ken Foote, at k.foote@colorado.edu.
If you have questions about registration or logistical issues related to the workshop, contact AAG Conference Director, Oscar Larson, at olarson@aag.org or 202-234-1450.
* Please note: The correct room rate is $179, not $149 as previously published. We regret the error and apologize for any inconvenience.
Field Trip
An optional field trip will be available at no additional cost for workshop attendees on Saturday, June 16. The trip will extend into the Rocky Mountains west of Boulder to the continental divide. Participants will be able to purchase dinner at one of the stops on the way back to Boulder.
