Promoting the Sciences:  Science As Liberal Education

Sponsored by The American Conference of Academic Deans and The Phi Beta Kappa Society
October 25-27, 2007
Washington, D.C.

In October 2007, ACAD and the Phi Beta Kappa Society held their third biennial conference  at the Madison Hotel in Washington, DC.  Deans, provosts, faculty and other academicians from across the nation and abroad attended the three-day event.  Featured speakers were James Trefil, Clarence J. Robinson Professor of Physics at George Mason University, who discussed “The Other 98%:  Science Education for Non-scientists”; Eric Jolly, president of the Minnesota Museum of Science, whose topic was “Science as an Essential Literacy”; and Philip Glotzbach, president of Skidmore College, who presented “Young Men, Young Women and Fire: The Underappreciated Aesthetics of Scientific Understanding.”

Elizabeth Redden, reporting for Inside Higher Ed, attended sessions and interviewed organizers and participants.  Her article about the event, “Interdisciplinarity and the Science Classroom”, was pu blushed on October 29, 2007, inspiring a substantial discussion on the Web.

Conference Program (PDF, 304KB)

Liberal Arts Education in America and the World

Sponsored by The American Conference of Academic Deans and The Phi Beta Kappa Society
October 27-29, 2005
Washington, D.C.

In October 2005, ACAD and the Phi Beta Kappa Society (PBK) joined forces again on their second co-sponsored conference: “Liberal Arts Education in America and the World,” hosted by the George Washington University. Over 150 deans, provosts, faculty and other academicians from across the nation and abroad attended the three-day conference.

Following our first successful collaboration in 2003 (“Intellectual Leadership in the Liberal Arts hosted by the College of Charleston”), the conference engaged participants in the important conversations about the possibilities and promises of liberal arts education in global contexts. It also challenged attendees to imagine and think in new ways about the leadership required from academics in the United States to promote a rich understanding of global issues and cultures. Featured speakers were Dr. Madeleine F. Green, Vice President and Director, Center for Institutional Initiatives, The American Council on Education; Mr. Jesse Sheidlower, North American Editor, The Oxford English Dictionary; Dr. Joseph N. White, Foreign Service Institute; and Dr. Katherine H. Will, President, Gettysburg College.

Conference program (PDF, 192KB)

Intellectual Leadership in the Liberal Arts

Sponsored by The American Conference of Academic Deans and The Phi Beta Kappa Society and hosted by the College of Charleston
October 23-25, 2003
Charleston, SC

Academic leaders committed to the liberal arts are often erudite and passionate in examining, debating, reforming and reaffirming the ideas and ideals of liberal education. As they well know, intellectual leadership is crucial for its continued flourishing – and, in some cases, survival. In this unprecedented collaboration, the American Conference of Academic Deans is partnering with Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s preeminent undergraduate honors organization, to provide academic leaders with the opportunity to reflect on the many intellectual issues that they face as they advocate for the liberal arts.

Conference program (PDF, 364KB)

Strategic Budgeting for Shrinking Budgets: A One-Day ACAD Workshop

July 28, 2003
Chicago, IL
Loyola University Chicago (Water Tower Campus)

One of the challenges deans and provosts face is linking
budgets to academic priorities. In times of shrinking resources, this challenge increases in magnitude. The American Conference of Academic Deans (ACAD) is offering a one-day workshop providing a practical forum for academic officers to problem-solve with their peers on this important and timely topic.

Facilitators: Pete Facione, Loyola University Chicago; Jeanne Narum, The Independent Colleges Office (ICO) and Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL); Jim Pence, Pacific Lutheran University and ACAD

Conference program (PDF, 12 KB)

The ACAD Annual Meeting is held in January in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U). Each year ACAD hosts a track of sessions and workshops that run parallel to the theme of the AAC&U meeting and provide academic administrators with sessions tailored specifically to their needs. ACAD prides itself on providing exceptional and dynamic sessions that engage our membership, and others, in discussions on topics that are both timely and relevant to today’s academic leader. Participants can expect to leave the meeting feeling revitalized and armed with the necessary resources to return to their campuses to face any challenges. The ACAD Annual Meeting is also where the organization hosts the Annual Business Breakfast Meeting for the ACAD membership, as well as a Friday night reception open to our membership, colleagues and friends.

ACAD posts its Call for Proposals for the Annual Meeting in the late spring of the year preceding the meeting. If you are interested in being a presenter, or would like any additional information about the ACAD Annual Meeting, please contact the ACAD office.

Past Annual Meeting Programs

• January 21-24, 2009, Seattle: "Leadership for the Future: Meeting Global Challenges on College Campuses" (PDF, 48 KB)
• January 23-26, 2008, Washington, D.C.: "Intentional Learning: Connecting Philosophy and Practice" (PDF, 112 KB)
• January 17-20, 2007, New Orleans: "Meeting The Test: Responding To The Big Questions" (PDF, 60 KB)
• January 25-28, 2006, Washington, D.C.: "Articulating the Value and Managing the Culture of Liberal Education" (PDF, 48 KB)
• January 26-29, 2005, San Francisco: "Managing Competing Priorities: Academic Leadership and the Changing Institutional Agenda" (PDF, 200 KB)
• January 21-24, 2004, Washington, D.C.: "The Deans’ Dilemmas: Practicing Academic Leadership" (PDF, 60 KB)
• January 2003, Seattle: "The Peril and the Promise: American Higher Education and the Goals of Global Development," remarks by Dr. Mamphela Ramphele, Managing Director, The World Bank Group

In October 2005, ACAD and the Phi Beta Kappa Society (PBK) joined forces again on their second co-sponsored conference: “Liberal Arts Education in America and the World,” hosted by the George Washington University. Over 150 deans, provosts, faculty and other academicians from across the nation and abroad attended the three-day conference.

Following our first successful collaboration in 2003 (“Intellectual Leadership in the Liberal Arts hosted by the College of Charleston“), the conference engaged participants in the important conversations about the possibilities and promises of liberal arts education in global contexts. It also challenged attendees to imagine and think in new ways about the leadership required from academics in the United States to promote a rich understanding of global issues and cultures. Featured speakers were Dr. Madeleine F. Green, Vice President and Director, Center for Institutional Initiatives, The American Council on Education; Mr. Jesse Sheidlower, North American Editor, The Oxford English Dictionary; Dr. Joseph N. White, Foreign Service Institute; and Dr. Katherine H. Will, President, Gettysburg College.

Conference program (PDF, 192KB)

Academic leaders committed to the liberal arts are often erudite and passionate in examining, debating, reforming and reaffirming the ideas and ideals of liberal education. As they well know, intellectual leadership is crucial for its continued flourishing — and, in some cases, survival. In this unprecedented collaboration, the American Conference of Academic Deans is partnering with Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s preeminent undergraduate honors organization, to provide academic leaders with the opportunity to reflect on the many intellectual issues that they face as they advocate for the liberal arts.

Conference program (PDF, 362 KB)

One of the challenges deans and provosts face is linking budgets to academic priorities. In times of shrinking resources, this challenge increases in magnitude. The American Conference of Academic Deans (ACAD) is offering a one-day workshop providing a practical forum for academic officers to problem-solve with their peers on this important and timely topic.

Facilitators: Pete Facione, Loyola University Chicago; Jeanne Narum, The Independent Colleges Office (ICO) and Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL) ; Jim Pence, Pacific Lutheran University and ACAD

Conference program (PDF, 12 KB)