Media Monday - Universities aren’t about teaching v. research, they’re about teaching and research

This is a topic that has been near and dear to my heart lately.  Stephen Saideman's article entitled Universities aren’t about teaching v. research, they’re about teaching and research in the Globe and Mail was personally fascinating to me.  Let me first say, this is a debate that is happening not just in Canada but it seems to be occurring in Universities around the world.  How to balance teaching and research?  The way I do it is really strange, I do it through my service (the forgotten third component of the professors job description).

In my service to the community,  I choose to work with organizations that will allow me to do research that will help them.  This assures me three things:

1. That the research will be used and valued by someone;
2. My research will keep me current and relevant to industry and the trends occurring within it; and
3. Will allow me to merge theoretical frameworks into a practice-based orientation to gain real insights. 

Further, I then get into the upper echelons of the organizations and build networks who I use as guest speakers and get students internship positions.  While this is a model that can not work for everyone, it is one that works for me.  I believe as a result of my research, my classes better prepare my students for the future.