Thinking Thursdays: Is This The Worst Job In America?
Apr 3, 2025
Explore the tumultuous leadership landscape at Columbia University, facing scrutiny from various stakeholders. Delve into the challenges of maintaining academic freedom amid political pressures and ideological clashes. Discover the tough choices leaders face while balancing institutional integrity with external influence. The discussion highlights the impact of rising campus tensions and the necessity for strong, value-driven leadership during crises. Can the next president chart a new course for the university amidst such challenges?
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insights INSIGHT
Columbia's Leadership Crisis
Columbia University's presidential search is challenging due to unclear leadership and direction.
The situation necessitates difficult decisions, like choosing between reform or maintaining the status quo.
insights INSIGHT
University Leadership Challenges
Leading a modern university is complex, requiring diverse skills beyond academic credentials.
The governance structure, funding model, and stakeholder dynamics create additional challenges.
insights INSIGHT
Shifting University Dynamics
The role of university presidents has evolved from primarily academic to encompassing administrative and financial responsibilities.
External stakeholders, like donors and the government, are increasingly asserting their influence on university affairs.
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The book explores how the ideas 'what doesn’t kill you makes you weaker,' 'always trust your feelings,' and 'life is a battle between good people and evil people' have become embedded in American culture. These 'Great Untruths' contradict basic psychological principles and ancient wisdom, leading to a culture of safetyism that interferes with young people’s social, emotional, and intellectual development. The authors investigate various social trends, including fearful parenting, the decline of unsupervised play, and the impact of social media, as well as changes on college campuses and the broader context of political polarization in America.
What's Our Problem?
A Self-Help Book for Societies
Tim Urban
This book is a comprehensive analysis of modern society, delving into history, evolutionary psychology, political theory, neuroscience, and modern-day political movements. It introduces a vertical axis that explores how we think, as individuals and as groups, rather than the traditional left-center-right horizontal political axis. The book is packed with original concepts, sticky metaphors, and 300 drawings, offering readers a delightful and fascinating journey that will change their perspective on the world.
Imagine trying to lead an organization under extreme pressure from employees, customers, funders and even the federal government. That is the unenviable position facing the next president of Columbia University--and a case study that leaders in all types of organizations can learn from.
On a new Elevate Podcast series, Thinking Thursdays, host Robert Glazer and producer Mick Sloan delve into the past two leaders of Columbia: Minouche Shafik, who stepped down after a year filled with campus unrest, and her successor, Interim President Katrina Armstrong, who resigned six months later after a very public faceoff with the Trump Administration. Robert and Mick dig into the shortcomings of both Shafik and Armstrong and the extremely challenging circumstances both leaders faced. Then, they try to answer one of the toughest questions any organization faces today: what direction should Columbia go in for their next president?
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