October 31, 2017

SEC ALDP Fall Workshop Celebrates Past, Prepares for Future

LSU Executive Vice President and Provost Dr. Richard Koubek talks to SEC ALDP participants about leadership in higher education.

By: Bryant Welbourne
SECU (Twitter: @TheSECU)

The SEC Academic Leadership Development Program’s (SEC ALDP) fall workshop was held at LSU, Oct. 23-25. The event was the first SEC-wide meeting for the tenth cohort of fellows, and the opening night featured a celebration of the decade-long program.

This year’s participants were joined by Dr. Christine Curtis, Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Alabama-Huntsville and former SEC ALDP liaison from the University of South Carolina. In her keynote address, Dr. Curtis not only spoke about her experience in helping create the SEC ALDP in 2007, but also lessons learned in her years as an academic administrator.

“I’m very grateful to be one of the founders of a program that is helping shape leaders in higher education,” said Dr. Curtis. “It’s humbling to see that the vision statement, mantra and goals we created 10 years ago haven’t changed.”

The second day of the workshop began with a talk on academic leadership by LSU Executive Vice President and Provost Dr. Richard Koubek. And 2016 SEC Professor of the Year Dr. Isiah Warner joined a presentation on strategies in recruiting a diverse faculty (Dr. Warner serves as LSU’s Vice President for Strategic Initiatives). The SEC ALDP workshop concluded with a panel of LSU deans answering various questions from participants and sharing best practices.

“It’s always important to have a vision, set a strategic path and rely on your resources,” said Dr. Stacia Haynie, Dean of the LSU College of Humanities and Social Sciences and former SEC ALDP liaison.

Other workshop topics included budgeting, different paths to decision making and campus master planning. SEC ALDP participants were not only impressed by the variety of topics, but also the presenters.

“The workshop provided us a lot of great information that we might not have the resources for on our different campuses,” said Dr. Lynne Parker, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Engagement in the Tickle College of Engineering at the University of Tennessee. “I also enjoyed networking and learning from colleagues about how they deal with issues because there isn’t a one size fits all approach.”

The final SEC-wide workshop will take place Feb. 21-23, 2018 at Auburn University.