Category Archives: Academia

Everything about One Thing

The old joke about academics knowing everything about nothing isn’t quite right. We know everything about One Thing. Which can lead to some weird places. Continue reading

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Everybody knew. Nobody did anything.

The revelations regarding the sexual abuse suffered by Andrea Robin Skinner at the hands of her stepfather, and the monstrous, sociopathic reaction of her mother, Canadian literary icon Alice Munro, were both horrifying and necessary to read. Horrifying for the damage that Munro and her husband inflicted on their children. Necessary because they’re a reminder that the impulse to privilege the perceived genius, the powerful and the famous at the expense of the young and the vulnerable continues to disfigure our society, including my profession, academia. We need to deal with these walls of silence. Continue reading

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Some thoughts on sabbaticals

I’m not sure there’s anything in academia with a greater air of mystery than the sabbatical. From outside the profession, it’s often seen as a year-long vacation and travel to exotic locales. Within, it’s treated as a chance to recharge … Continue reading

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