What should be the relationship between business and higher education?

Higher education is a passion of mine.  I recently read the article from The New Yorker  - "Do Business People Make Good University Presidents?"  This article discusses the appointment of a businessperson as President of the University of Iowa and the reaction of the faculty of the university.  This bringing in of an "outsider" to academia brings up interesting questions like what is the purpose of a University.  A key point is that a University's purpose is not to maximize profits but to maximize student's education. This might be a foreign concept to a for-profit world.  Perhaps it could be likened to a business model that included having higher quality standards or keeping a brand "image" up or maybe a luxury market where name is key but in general a university does not follow a typical business model. However, academia could use some help in streamlining things like student services and infrastructure maintenance and expansion to maximize them for the dollars available-not eliminate them!

For profit businesses and the public in general should realize that the value of higher education goes well beyond that student themselves. Without universities, businesses don't have an educated innovative workforce. They also don't have consumers. Business and academia should have a symbiotic relationship that can take the best of both an academic world and a business world and combine them to benefit society. That is after all what government is for- for doing things to benefit the entire population that no one other single entity could do for the greater good and for the long term even if it doesn't necessarily make business sense- things like infrastructure, education and the arts. But in an era of ever shrinking government funding, how does higher ed evolve to survive?

What can we do to encourage the conversation between business, higher ed, and government to keep an innovative education system moving forward? Are there things that alumni can do to help? Are there models for success that should be followed? What can the future be for higher ed? Creating the right balance will be key to keeping universities relevant and thriving.

Original post from Linked In.

Why Astronomers should participate in AAS Congressional Visit Day and Advocacy for Astronomy!

Last March I had the honor to participate in our democracy and attend the AAS Congressional Visit Day.   The visit was such a positive experience; I want to strongly encourage you to consider becoming involved in advocacy for Astronomy as well.  

You have never visited Congress?  No worries! The visit to the Congressional offices is actually a culmination of a few weeks of preparation.  Once you are informed by the AAS that you were selected to attend, you get to work contacting your Congressperson to set up a meeting.  There is a directory online to find out this information based on your home address (http://aas.org/resources/contacting-congress).  Remember you are the congressperson’s constituent and they are interested in hearing from you! In the AAS visit, you will also be visiting in small groups (2-3 people) so you also don't have to worry about doing this alone.

Over the next few weeks, Joel and Josh take you through background information on the various agencies and the federal budget, and congressional structure to make sure you understand the Congressional landscape. This information is given through a few short telecons and a briefing the day before your Hill visit.

My biggest concern before I went was: What would I say to a Congressperson about Astronomy that would be impactful?  First, the AAS briefing stressed, do no harm.  We are all astronomers and we are advocating for astronomy overall.  It isn't fund one project over another.  The visit is about being a source of information and anecdotes about how astronomy fits into local politics - all politics is local after all.  You will spend some time within your small group figuring out what are the main points you want to cover in the meetings.  Focusing on why your research is important to society.  My group focused on the jobs creation and the scientific pipeline created by the NSF REU program and advocated for a strong NSF budget.  All three of us in the group had been part of the REU program in some way and our enthusiasm for it showed.  The NSF REU program is a compelling element of astronomy that touches on job creation, training the next generation and creating a culture of innovation and inspiration.  All things that are relatable in DC.  But there are many ways an astronomer can be relatable to Congress from participating in major missions to educating the next generation at a university to just being the inspiration to think about the big questions in life like “Are there other habitable planets?”

Why should you take 2-3 days out of your busy schedule to do this?
Since most of our funding in astronomy is tied to the US federal government in one way or another, this experience was a great way to learn how the money is allocated to the various agencies that support our research.  We all have to advocate for what we care about and knowing how to do that most effectively is important.  And you get to connect with new colleagues and spend a few days in DC visiting the Hill.

The website with the sign up for the AAS Congressional Visit Day can be found:
http://aas.org/content/congressional-visits-day-2015-sign-form

Even if you cannot attend this event, check out the AAS Policy page (http://aas.org/policy) to see how you can participate and advocate for astronomy!

Women In Astronomy: Becoming a Leader

This blog post was originally written for the Women In Astronomy Blog.


Women In Astronomy: Becoming a Leader:   Today's guest blogger is Kelly Korreck. Kelly is an Astrophysicist at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory part of the Harva...