I like Lon's response. I think both are necessary: encouraging creativity
AND removing obstacles. I have just convened a group of faculty and staff
interested in interdisciplinary programs. There is no lack of creativity
among this group but there is a great deal of suspicion and fear that the
laws, regulations, contract clauses, funding formulas, etc., which govern
curriculum, working conditions, etc., will prove to be insurmountable. For
this group, then, I am thinking of doing things a bit out of sequence. That
is, after clarifying our terms, establishing some goals and ground rules and
a game plan, we need to tackle logistics first, not last. Only if it appears
we can come up with some solutions that "open the boxes" but still keep us
"legal," do I believe that people will be able to follow their creative
impulses and that we will get buy-in from others. We will immediately run
into sacred cows, but I've invited representatives from each of those "herds"
-- e.g., the faculty union -- to sit with us from the beginning so they
can be a part of the solution and not be dealt a fait accompli where they
can only react from their usual, adversarial position. So, I do think it
is important to be aware of the impediments and remove them, as much as it
is to stimulate creative thinking. Harriett.
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