Includes bibliographical references and index.

Leadership -- Advice for new chairpersons -- Seven habits of successful chairpersons -- Providing leadership -- Duties and responsibilities of chairpersons -- Timesaving tips for effective chairpersons -- Communicating -- Department -- Developing a departmental vision -- Improving your department -- Developing outcome assessment programs -- Managing change -- Building and maintaining morale -- Managing conflict -- Working with constituents -- Working with your dean -- Dealing with curriculum matters -- Conducting effective meetings -- Budget and financial management -- Legal issues -- Avoiding legal problems -- Understanding sexual harassment and the Americans with Disabilities Act -- Faculty -- Recruiting and hiring faculty -- Retaining, mentoring, and terminating faculty -- Strategies for faculty development -- Evaluating faculty performance -- Handling promotion and tenure issues -- Dealing with chronic low achievers -- Dealing with difficult faculty -- Students -- Recruiting and retaining students -- Dealing with emotional and disrespectful student behavior -- Looking ahead -- Moving up the administrative ladder -- Where do you go from here? -- Appendixes.