Tenth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

Mission statements offer interdisciplinary schools of health professions a true north, a rallying point when organizational challenges arise and a reaffirmation of progress when strides are being made. This paper will explore strategies and practices that Deans find useful in communicating the central purpose of why faculty and staff come to work everyday and how a community can remain invested in a university or school’s purpose. Central to this paper will be how the perception of direct and transparent communication from the Dean across multiple levels of stakeholders can effect engagement, reduce faculty and staff turnover and improve the school or university’s reputation. Case studies from town hall meetings, faculty assembly meetings, staff assembly meetings and department chair meetings will be presented and leaders’ responses to questions from these venues will be categorized according to the four domains of Bowman and Deal’s leadership model, structural, human resources, political and symbolic. In this era where the “why” of higher education is being questioned, a school or university with a true north and a commitment to a mission statement is increasingly important.