By Carol Hollenshead and Jeanne Miller

Faculty recruitment and retention is an important issue for any administrator in academia. The changing demographic profile of faculty makes the issue of family-friendly policies more significant to higher education administrators. What family-friendly policies are currently in place at institutions of higher education across the country, and at what types of institutions? The Center for the Education of Women (CEW) at the University of Michigan has just released a new publication that examines the family-friendly policies most often offered, assists administrators in identifying which policies they might implement at their institutions and allows them to compare their own institutions’ policies in relation to their peers.

Family-Friendly Policies in Higher Education: Where Do We Stand? reports on research findings from a CEW survey supported by the Sloan Foundation. The survey of over 250 institutions of higher education focused on work-life policies for tenured and tenure-track faculty. The policies most frequently offered were: tenure clock extension, modified duties, and unpaid leave in excess of FMLA. While the average number of family-friendly policies was highest at research institutions and elite baccalaureate institutions, these are the institutions that employ the smallest percentages of women in tenure track faculty positions.

Where Do We Stand? includes a series of questions useful for examining the policies at your institution. Such questions include “Are our policies formal or informal? “How is childbirth covered? Are we in compliance with the Pregnancy Discrimination Act?” and “Are our policies flexible?” among others. Also included is a list of suggestions for further research.

Like other employees, as academics evaluate their career options they are increasingly concerned with the availability of work-life policies and benefits. At some point in their careers, all faculty members are likely to have family needs to manage, whether having a baby, caring for a seriously ill spouse or domestic partner, or tending to an elderly parent. By acknowledging these competing demands and demonstrating flexibility and support, a college or university can position itself as a premier workplace as it seeks to recruit and retain the next generation of talented faculty.

Through the generous support of the Sloan Foundation, CEW is able to make this publication available at no charge. If you are interested in receiving a copy of Family-Friendly Policies in Higher Education: Where Do We Stand? please contact CEW at cew.mail@umich.edu or call (734) 998-7080.