Lessons Learned

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

Growth in Motion

Hi all, 

Every one of us in higher education deals with failure all the time, but it’s not something we talk about enough, much less celebrate. In my mind, in this field, if you’re not failing, you’re not trying.

The importance and value of failure is as true for curriculum development and teaching as it is for other parts of our work. We are in a period of rapid change, with multiple external pressures that will affect how we train students in the future. We’ve been talking about how to respond to that for a couple of years, but now, as we move from talk to programming, is where we’re finding that some things work and others do not.

At the ground level, this means we are piloting classes that will require iteration. We’ll try special topics that may not work out for one reason or another. We’ll need to adapt and adjust constantly. I recognize that comes at a cost in time and frustration, but it’s a cost we must bear to innovate in the way that has long been a hallmark of our school.

We should also talk openly about our failures after the fact, post-game, after-action. We don’t need to hide them; we need to understand them. As an example, this past summer I tried to launch a couple of in-person educational workshops in Detroit. We had excellent colleagues prepare materials, strong partners help advertise, great content, and a perfect venue—and not one person signed up. Fail. But for me, the important part is understanding why it failed. I’m not giving up on the idea that we have something valuable to offer people through innovative formats until I have more evidence.

As we respond to the challenges ahead, we need to try hard enough that we risk failure, and then examine those failures with clear eyes. I know we can do that, because I’ve seen all of you do it regularly in your research and professional activities. I’m looking forward to applying that same lens to our educational activities.

Best,

Cliff Lampe, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs