You know, dean colleagues, I sometimes wonder what keeps me in this wacky enterprise of academic administration. After all, ours is not the happiest of professions. Indeed, it is frightfully easy for us to dwell on the downside of deaning. When you drag your weary body home at the end of a typical day in the academic vineyard, what do you tell your spouse or companion or dog? How often do you say, “What delightful deaning I did today”?
Reciprocity over Hierarchy: Designing and Implementing a Student-Led Reverse Mentoring Program
Many academic leaders, including administrators and faculty members, participate in traditional mentoring programs that prioritize hierarchy. But these programs typically don’t foster engagement and connection between students and faculty or
Marquita Lyons-Smith and Keva Suitte
October 19, 2026
