April 7, 2024

Interview: Former Faculty Assembly Chair Mark Pendras

Associate Professor Mark Pendras from School of Urban Studies served as the Faculty Assembly Chair 2016-2017. During his leadership, the Faculty Assembly and the Executive Council focused on four strategic priorities: 1. Race, Equity, and Inclusion; 2. Undergraduate Education; 3. Budgetary Decision making; and 4. Faculty Composition.

We’re very grateful for having Mark sharing his leadership and service experience with us!

1. What motivated you to run for the Vice Chair of the Faculty Assembly?

Prior to seeking the Vice Chair, I had spent a number of years on the Faculty Assembly Executive Council, gaining experience with campus-level governance. The Vice Chair role was an opportunity for me to explore a leadership position with more responsibility. At the time, I was also motivated by questions surrounding faculty diversity and faculty composition on the UW Tacoma campus and the Vice Chair/Chair positions provided an opportunity to guide some discussions on campus.

2. What valuable experience did you gain by serving as the Chair of Faculty Assembly?

Serving as Chair of Faculty Assembly provides a window into campus operations. As I learned, there is a big difference between attending EC meetings and running them. The latter requires a broader understanding of the important issues on campus, and the Chair position involves meeting with central decision makers on campus. I still see the position as more of a service role than a position of power, but there are opportunities to shape discussions, gather and share information, connect with colleagues across campus, and work with campus administrators that unique and rewarding. I learned a great deal about campus governance.

3. What faculty governance project do you feel most proud of during your leadership?

I was most motivated to take on the Chair role in order to guide discussions on faculty diversity and faculty composition. While those discussions didn’t go quite as planned, I was still proud of bringing them forward for discussion. In terms of actual accomplishments, I would say that updating the time schedule for classes on the UW Tacoma campus was most satisfying. We were able to match our classroom teaching hours with those of the other UW campuses, simplify the teaching matrix for the campus, and reestablish the free lunch hour for student groups and other community building activities. It was a complicated effort that required collaboration between faculty and staff and navigation of some tensions and differences of opinion. I learned a lot from the experience and am happy with the results.

4. What advice would you give to Faculty interested in being a part of Faculty Governance?

The jobs of Chair/Vice Chair are difficult but rewarding. They require a collaborative spirit, a willingness to learn, and an openness to differences of opinion. I feel that the working relationship between the Chair and Vice Chair is important, and I think valuing and respecting the staff support is essential; I don’t know how I would have done the job without the excellent staff support I received. In the end, I found the experience to be positive. I learned a lot and I have better understanding of campus governance as a result.