The department chair’s role in most institutions of higher learning is largely working with faculty, students and deans. The chairperson has to be a kind of a faculty and supervisor who brings out the best in the people they supervise, being a linchpin between the faculty and the deans and making sure students in the department are meeting the learning outcomes of the program. Yet, the department chair in Africana/African Studies has other sociopolitical roles and challenges in addition to the ones mentioned above because of the nature of the discipline and components of African/American life and the African/American experiences. In this workshop, participants will learn the best practices for becoming an effective department chair especially for an Africana/African Studies department. The specific role responsibilities and challenges for this workshop would include: 1. Effective Leadership Styles and Skills 2. Curriculum Development 3. Strategies for Writing Department Self-Study and Program Evaluation 4. Balancing Caregiving and Chairing 5. Dealing with Difficult Faculty and Civility 6. Sociopolitical roles and challenges
