魅色天堂

• Peer Faculty Mentoring Program
• Ask the Expert and Teaching Observations

Peer Faculty Mentoring Program 

Check back for future dates of this program.

New incoming full-time faculty, and full-time second-year faculty, who are not limited term have the unique opportunity to participate in a university-wide Peer Faculty Mentoring Program coordinated by CELT. Seasoned faculty at 魅色天堂 can share what they learned and get to know new faculty by mentoring them.

Specifically, we pair new and second-year faculty with mid-career and advanced career faculty from different departments at 魅色天堂 by using best practices in faculty mentoring. The mentors and mentees exchange e-mails in July after matches are announced, gather for the first time in person for a CELT mentoring luncheon and workshop during new faculty orientation in early August, and meet one-on-one throughout the academic year. They are also required to attend an additional relevant workshop or training sponsored by CELT or the Office of Employee and Organizational Development at 魅色天堂 and invited to special social gatherings just for new faculty and their mentors. Sample workshop and training topics include tips for effective mentoring, mentor mapping, and research and strategies for addressing the needs of early career faculty.

Objectives of the program:

• Ensure that new and second-year faculty who are not limited term have a point person (a mid-or-advanced career faculty member) outside their department whom they can go to with questions during their first couple years at 魅色天堂
• Increase the competence, confidence, and sense of belonging for new and second-year faculty to better retain and prepare them to succeed during their first couple years as well as through promotion (and tenure, if relevant to their position) at 魅色天堂
• Enhance support for diverse faculty at 魅色天堂
• Articulate and apply best practices in mentoring and career development for faculty
• Build relationships, community, and a peer faculty mentoring network that bridges ranks, disciplines, departments, and colleges at 魅色天堂

To volunteer to be a mentor, or for a new or second-year faculty to request a mentor, see instructions and deadlines below to fill out questionnaires. Mentoring matches are made by the Director of CELT in consultation with representatives from the Department Head Council, Provost's Office, Office of Employee and Organizational Development, Human Resources, and the Center for eLearning.

CELT's Peer Faculty Mentoring Program supplements any informal or formal mentoring that occurs within departments and disciplines. Research on mentoring recommends that faculty have multiple mentors for different purposes.

Questions? Contact the Director of CELT, Dr. Jamie Landau (jlandau@valdosta.edu, 229-333-6032). 

VOLUNTEER TO BE A MENTOR

Are you tenured or a promoted lecturer who would like to share the lessons that you have learned working at 魅色天堂 with new faculty? Maybe you had a great mentor earlier in your career and want to give back now? Mentoring goes both ways, so it is common for seasoned faculty to be energized by new colleagues even as they support them.

Participation in CELT’s Peer Faculty Mentoring Program was a unique opportunity but voluntary. As a result, tenured faculty or lecturers who have received promotion would volunteer to be a mentor by filling out a Volunteer to be a Mentor brief questionnaire that asks a few questions about professional and personal areas in which you could support new faculty, and upload your CV. This information would be used to create effective mentoring pairs.

Check back for future dates of this program.

NEW FACULTY REQUEST FOR A MENTOR

Are you a new incoming full-time faculty or returning full-time second-year faculty at 魅色天堂 (whether tenured, tenure-track, or a lecturer) who is not limited term? Research shows that formal mentoring programs for junior faculty like you increase your potential for success and happiness during the first couple years on the job, and in your years ahead through promotion. Mentored faculty feel more “at home” at an institution, have higher job satisfaction, and are more productive in their scholarly activity and teaching.

Participation in CELT’s Peer Faculty Mentoring Program was a unique opportunity but voluntary. As a result, new incoming full-time faculty and second-year full-time faculty who are not limited term would request a mentor by filling out a New Faculty Request for a Mentor brief questionnaire that asks a few questions about your professional and personal needs, and upload your CV. This information would be used to create effective mentoring pairs.

Check back for future dates of this program.

Ask the Expert and Teaching Observations 

Faculty at 魅色天堂 have a lot of experience and expertise as teachers. However, too often we are unaware of the excellent work that our colleagues do in the classroom and, in turn, we miss out on learning from each other. Did you know, for instance, that 魅色天堂 faculty have won awards and published research about teaching online? Perhaps you want to talk to a fellow faculty who has integrated high-impact practices (HIPs) into their courses to find out about the barriers and benefits? Or you could request an expert to conduct a Teaching Observation of your face-to-face courses, or for a hybrid, hy-flex, or fully-online course that you teach? Click the hyperlinks above to download CELT-eLearning's recommendations for conducting peer teaching observations. For another resource, see this 魅色天堂 Guidebook for Peer Evaluation of Teaching.  

The Ask the Expert list below is for 魅色天堂 faculty to easily see who to contact for peer support with particular pedagogy. All of the faculty listed graciously agreed to be a resource for colleagues on campus, such as they could conduct a teaching observation. Many of them partner with CELT to facilitate faculty learning communities (FLCs), too, so consider joining an ongoing, active group of faculty who are working together to explore new pedagogy and share teaching tips. 

If you would like to be added to this list of experts, contact CELT Administrative Coordinator Jennifer Pifer (jpifer@valdosta.edu, 229-253-4079).