Lu, Toh-Ming (2023). Turmoil and opportunities in higher education: The road of an academic department at the dawn of the 21st century. (Second Edition). In: “Evolutionary Progress in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics”, Wang, Lawrence K. and Tsao, Hung-ping (Editors). Volume 5, Number 2A, 5(2A), February 14, 2023, 233 pages. Lenox Institute Press, MA, USA. Lenox.Institute@gmail.com; lut@rpi.edu. ISBN: 0-9675372-0-7. …….. ABSTRACT: At the turn of the 21th Century, American higher education underwent a turbulent time. The debate was on how teaching could be carried out effectively and how learning could be achieved successfully. The main reason for this turmoil was the arrival of the information technology. Knowledge can be found any time and place through the web. The role of professors was not just transfer of knowledge, but also on teaching students how to learn. “Student centered” learning became a key focus. During his tenure as the Physics Department Chair, Dr. Toh-Ming Lu has been a major driving force for education reform. This memoir describes insights into what he saw and felt as a Department Chair during this turbulent time and how the higher education institutions may excel in the new era of information age. The memoir was first published in the spring of 1999 after he stepped down as the Department Chairman.