The view from the helm: leading the American university during an era of change

The path to the presidency

The leaders and best

Institutional saga

The Michigan saga

A heritage of leadership

Michigan's character as a trailblazer

The role of institutional saga in presidential leadership

The "what," "how," and "who" of the university presidency

The path to the presidency

Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor; rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief . . . and university president

The academic leadership ladder

The path to the Michigan White House

On to Michigan

Trapped in the gravitational pull of academic administration

On the brink

The presidential search

The search process

The presidential search : a victim's perspective

A postmortem

Some advice for presidential search committees and university governing boards

Some advice for candidates for university presidencies

So what are we supposed to do now?

Presidential leadership

Presidential leadership

The elements of presidential leadership

Several unique aspects of university leadership

The many styles and philosophies of presidential leadership

Adapting leadership styles to the times and the institution

A matter of personal style

Movers and shakers, pushers and coasters: the impact of the presidency

Leadership for a time of change

Executive leadership

The executive officer team

Go downtown and get the money

Bricks and mortar

Crisis management

The challenges of executive leadership

Academic leadership

The academic clockwork

Academic leadership

Faculty quality

Selection and recruitment of academic leadership

Tinkering with time bombs

The challenges to academic leadership by the president

Political leadership

Growing up in a rough neighborhood

Defending the university

The loyal (and sometimes not so loyal) opposition

The president and the governing board

The broader political agenda of the university and the university presidency

The hazards of political leadership

Moral leadership

The challenges to moral leadership

Social diversity and academic excellence

Student affairs

Institutional integrity

The bully pulpit

Pastoral care

Personal traits and traps

Strategic leadership

The approach

The action plan

Lessons learned and the growing concern

Institutional transformation

Experiments and ventures

More lessons learned: the challenges of transformation

The university president: an endangered species?

Life as a university president

The president's spouse

The hired help

A turn about the university calendar

Lifestyles of the rich and famous

On the road

A matter of style

Always some doubts

Tilting with windmills

Windmill no. 1: the privately supported public university

Windmill no. 2: college sports

Windmill no. 3: university governance

The importance of fighting losing battles

The endgame

Survival instinct

Putting it all on the line

Wear and tear

The two-minute warning

Taking stock

Fading away

Years after a decade at the helm

Whence and whither the university

Some final thoughts on the university presidency

Notes.