Although I am enjoying and profiting from the list of "must have" books, I
am concerned that the books were lost in the first place. In the past five
years or so, this is the third time I have heard of an academic institution
losing a professor's office contents while the professor was on sabbatical.
Why does this happen?
At my institution, we have so far been blessed there is enough office space
that a professor's office is not used by the replacement faculty. The
faculty offices are somewhat sacred. I have not had to move anything out of
my office for the three sabbaticals I have had so far, and my office sat
vacant when I was away from it. This has been challenged lately because
some sabbatical replacements have had to use offices in a different building
than where their teaching is, but so far the policy has held.
When I was a graduate student, my professor took a leave for half a year and
his office was not used by the replacement. He gave me the key and told me
I could use it, but to guard it and not let any other faculty or postdocs or
students use it. I'm not sure it was necessary because other than the
janitors and me, I am not sure anyone else even had a key to it.
It seems to me the first choice is that a sabbatical professor's office
stays intact. A distant choice which seems must be followed religiously is
that the professor's personal belongings be kept very secure. I hope the
institution is paying for any lost personal belongings.
Michael D. Edmiston, Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry and Physics
Bluffton University
1 University Drive
Bluffton, OH 45817
419.358.3270
edmiston@bluffton.edu