Stories of the Academy

Stories of the Academy looks at relationships between women entering the ranks of faculty in higher education and more experienced faculty. Occasionally these relationships are so mutually fulfilling that they lead to great satisfaction and personal reward and can be named Good-Mother relationships. These relationships are deeper and more profoundly influential than traditional professional relationships for they involve a mythic or spiritual dimension. The archetype of the Good Mother provides a way to name and explicate these relationships. Using mythology and philosophy as guides to come to understand these relationships, the book first defines the myth of the Good Mother, demythologizes the myth, presents Good Mother stories told in conversational form, and, ultimately, searches for the mythic meaning in those stories. Written for anyone in the academy, this book also has broader implications for other professionals, particularly women. « This book could transform the academy. Presented with passionate conviction and eloquent wisdom, these life stories show that the groves of academe need not be the heartless and treacherous mindfields that they often have been. The authour offer an alternative, person-centered vision that challenges us to understand that professionalism need not exclude compassion and that the quest for scholastic excellence does not preclude the need for enabling (and yes, ennobling) nurturing. (Joanne J. Viano, Assistant Professor of English and French, University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg) « At breakfast one morning, I was seeking encouragement from a dear friend to re-enter academe. Little did I know that the results of our conversation would bethis powerfully inspiring book. Turn the pages with me as these fine scholars tell stories of struggle and triumph in the academy from the thrilling and heartening new perspective they identify as the Good Mother. (Mary Ellen Collins, Communication Specialist) « This book represents a giant step forward in the direction of true education. For too long, higher education has been ruled by a left-brain, male-dominant, competitive smallness that manifests itself in a denial of human emotions and spirituality. The stories in this book are not about a less rigorous approach to teaching and mentoring; they are about a larger definition of teaching and mentoring. This book is not about being a woman in academia; it is about being fully human in academia. (G. Lynn Nelson, Author of 'Writing and Being')