The Language of Collaboration
Jeff Yacup
3 September 2025
Jeff Yacup
Collaborator. Educator. Communicator
Likes: Pasta, Sports, Adventure, Travel
Dislikes: Winter, Pickles, Mean People, Dry Skin
1
Discovery of team dynamics, strengths, and priorities
2
Build trust in team through regular contact, shared learning, and listening
3
Engage in healthy conflict by creating regular spaces for questioning and asking why?
5
Peer accountability through a shared commitment of team goals
4
Commit to the teams goals and priorities
6
Measure the Results and share/celebrate the Success
Team Philosophy
Developing a high-functioning and engaged team
Agenda
- Problem Statement
- The Context
- Stakeholder Mapping
- Facilitating Collaboration Across Stakeholders
- Measuring Success
Problem Statement
Language programs across the Big Ten have been eliminated due to budget cuts. Addressing this void is of critical importance. Requiring collaboration from Graduate Deans, Chief Information Officers, Senior International Officers, and Liberal Arts and Sciences Deans, there are challenges to consider:
- Concerns by Liberal Arts and Science Deans that language faculty will see this as an attempt to eliminate jobs or departments
- Some Graduate Deans are enthusiastic while others are skeptical
- Chief Information Officers are concerned about resource allocation and data privacy
- The internal Program team is divided--some excited while others feel stretched thin and unclear about priorities
The task: build consensus and collaborative community, across both
stakeholder groups and the programs staff to ensure the initiative’s success.
The Context
Brazil, 1.5% of all intl. students (#9)
Japan, 1.2% of all intl. students (#13)
France, .8% of all intl. students (#22)
The Budget Squeeze is Real
Stakeholder Mapping
Liberal Arts and Sciences Deans
Purpose
Persona
What now?
Why does this group care about this decision?
-Concerns around elimination of jobs or departments. Need to protect budget
-English courses for international students who score low on TOEFL are revenue drivers
-Language programs are signature efforts
What research will help inform this persona?
-Estimated cost savings from creating a new program or collaborative model
-Quantify risk of not having alternative
-What does this mean for diversity of college?
-Estimated uptick in revenue if LAS helps deliver
-Faculty/student numbers for language programs
Motivations, Values, Context
-Budget is important, teaching experience, passion for student outcomes, cares about liberal education, diversity is important. Balancing broad range of disciplines
What do we need to validate? What don't we know? What now?
-Can we use current language program faculty to drive program?
-Do all Big Ten universities need to participate?
-Is there appetite for this from the Big Ten?
Graduate Deans
Purpose
Persona
What now?
Why does this group care about this decision?
-Some enthusiastic, some skeptical
-Grad Deans have hands in international, all grad programs
-Language programs serve as feeder to other programs
-Language programs important for TAs, GAs RAs, etc.
What research will help inform this persona?
-Need to understand the reasoning behind enthusiasm and skepticism
-how many students from language programs went on to grad programs at each institution
Motivations, Values, Context
-Value international due to importance for enrollment, ultra collaborative, often dotted line to language, limited budget, influencer on campus, close connections to SIOs
What do we need to validate? What don't we know? What now?
-What data can we show for impact to convince skeptical Deans?
-Are there Language programs housed in Grad departments (not LAS)?
Chief Information Officers
Purpose
Persona
What now?
Why does this group care about this decision?
-already strained, resource allocation
-data privacy
-There are potential financial impact to the group
What research will help inform this persona?
-Actual impact for resource allocation. Are there current systems we can utilize/retro fit?
-Does the BIG Collection have capacity to support?
-How would we manage data concerns?
-Could efficiencies create cost savings for this group?
Motivations, Values, Context
-Major concerns about data privacy, cyber security, staff time. Already all things to everyone tech wise. Has a wide and diversified team. Collaborates across all departments.
What do we need to validate? What don't we know? What now?
-Costings, staffing impact, data concerns, audit of current systems, potential cost savings, what happens if we do nothing?
BTAA Program Team
Purpose
Persona
What now?
Why does this group care about this decision?
-Some excited, some think already stretched thin
-Not sure what our actual priorities are
-Will impact work load, could impact travel
What research will help inform this persona?
-The major projects each team member is dealing with now
-Can we adjust resources internally to accomplish?
-Internal cost for project
Motivations, Values, Context
-Passionate about all Big Ten, access to education, making sure no schools get left behind. Importance of collaboration, leadership, and efficiencies; diversity/inclusion is a value
What do we need to validate? What don't we know? What now?
-Need to get groups together to understand, conduct research on costings, GANTT chart to map out potential project timeline
Facilitating Collaboration
Part I: Fact Finding
Part II: Research & Discovery
Part III: Consensus Building
Part IV: Implementation
MEasuring Success
The FUndamentals of Success for the Initiative
Data
Course evaluation during the course, at the conclusion, and regular feedback from stakeholders, instructors, and students will be critical for ongoing success
Community
Launch community group of stakeholders to regularly manage and discuss needed updates for resource. Maintain internal dialogue within BTAA group as well to ensure team goals are accomplished
TRends
Beyond just the Big Ten, keeping an eye on trends from other peer R-1s will be critical to anticipate future problems and innovate with programs
〞
There are approximately 3,000 languages spoken in the world today, and the CIC liberal arts deans, working closely with their foreign language faculties, have identified 26 of these languages as most critical to the nation's needs. This poses a problem that pleads for a cooperative, interinstitutional, CIC-type solution.
– Herman B. Wells
Thank you
