First of all, thanks to Al and Dan for inviting me to sit in the Faculty Lounge. It’s a great pleasure to me to join the community. For faculty members, June is usually a wonderful month. Grades are turned in and August is far away. You’re usually in the middle of writing and often are doing so in a wonderful place to which you’ve traveled. But for deans it’s sometimes a different story. I wanted to talk about why June is a particularly anxious month for many deans.
Most universities are on a June 30 fiscal year end. To a dean, there’s no more money coming in (well, almost no more money) and there are always at least some expenses. Payroll, for one. Also, there are frequently travel expenses for faculty members either for June trips or for earlier trips that don’t get reported until June. So June is one giant drain on the law school bank account.
If you’re a faculty member and you have some expense you want to incur that needs the dean’s ok, you would be well advised to make sure it’s payable in July rather than June if you can. You may have much better luck. Note to summer conference planners: attendance may be better if you hold your conference in May or July.
Plus, the development office is trying to get in as many gifts as possible by the fiscal year end so they’re scrambling and not in a very good mood (usually development people are wonderful folks to hang around with). Your dean may well be called upon to make a number of person solicitations during June, with the added fillip of not only trying to get a commitment but trying to ensure that the gift is actually paid by the end of the month.
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