State budget woes and a rocky economy have shaken public colleges and universities in recent years. One of the most noticeable shudders, however, has been a pervasive “brain drain” at some state institutions that face competition for their best faculty members from more prosperous institutions, both public and private.
Public colleges and universities are now girding themselves to win this war for tenured talent. Chief academic officers, deans, and department heads at those institutions are using specific incentives, careful nurturing, and, of course, cold hard cash as weapons. And they are also making hard decisions about whether some offers are worth matchingâ??and about the longer-term consequences of this faculty arms race.