Be kind. It’s my first pandemic.
I saw this statement on a button as I was scrolling through social media, and across the past three months, I have frequently returned to it as my institution has navigated the challenges associated with reopening a residential college in the time of COVID-19. For me, the primary academic leader, the weight of every decision has felt immense as I have juggled responsibilities to our students with the concerns of our faculty.
![](http://s26601.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/10.02_creating-an-academic-culture-of-working-to-live-300x144.jpg)
Creating an Academic Culture of Working to Live
I’m often asked how I succeed at managing work-life balance—or as I call it, “life-work balance”— and it stems from my childhood. My parents both worked as educators, and