WIP: Mentoring Early-career Engineering Faculty - A Faculty Development Coordinator Model

Julie Walters; Leanne DeVreugd; Laila Guessous

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Conference: 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access
Location: Virtual On line
Publication Date: June 22, 2020
Start Date: June 22, 2020
End Date: June 26, 2021
Conference Session: WIP-ing Up Faculty Development!
Tagged Division: Faculty Development Division
Page Count: 5
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--35560
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/35560
Download Count: 327

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Paper Authors

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Julie Walters Oakland University

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Julie Walters, J.D., Ph.D. Is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan. Her research and teaching address issues of law and public policy in the United States, particularly in the context of institutional and cultural dynamics. Recent work focuses on legal and normative issues surrounding the employment environment of women in STEM.

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Leanne DeVreugd Oakland University

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Leanne DeVreugd is the Program Coordinator for the Women in Science, Engineering, and Research Program (WISER) and other faculty development initiatives of the Research Office at Oakland University. She received both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Oakland University, completing her Master's of Public Administration in 2011 and post-Master's certificate in Human Resources Management in 2017.

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Laila Guessous Oakland University

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Laila Guessous, Ph.D. is a professor in the department of mechanical engineering at Oakland University (OU) in Rochester, MI. Her research and teaching interests lie in the areas of fluid mechanics and heat transfer, with an emphasis on computational methods. She is the program director for the NSF-funded AERIM REU program at OU, and was a co-PI on the Oakland University WISE@OU NSF ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation, and Dissemination (PAID) grant.

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Abstract

This is a Work in Progress Paper. The XX program at YY University (yy) was funded by an NSF ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation, and Dissemination (PAID) grant between 2011 and 2016. During this time, the XX program worked on several initiatives aimed towards increasing the recruitment, retention, promotion and job satisfaction of women and underrepresented faculty in STEM departments. Shortly after the inception of the program, a climate survey and focus group meetings with faculty showed a strong need for more faculty mentoring. This need was not limited to STEM, women or underrepresented faculty, and was indicative of the lack of formal faculty mentoring programs throughout the university, particularly in STEM departments. While informal and ad-hoc mentoring of early and mid-career STEM faculty was taking place in some instances, a majority of female and male STEM faculty indicated the need for more mentoring, particularly in the area of research. One important goal for the XX leadership team was hence to help encourage a culture of mentorship within the STEM departments so that more senior faculty would get involved and the value of mentorship both to the mentee and to the mentor would be recognized. One model adopted by the School of ZZ at yy involves the use of a Faculty Development Coordinator (FDC) who serves as a point person for untenured (and often tenured) faculty within the School. The FDC follows a “mentor network” model, serving as a facilitator who can connect faculty with others who may be better able to help with a specific issue. The FDC also provides one-on-one mentoring and organizes several group activities. While this faculty mentoring program is still evolving, this paper describes the setup of the FDC mentoring model in the School of ZZ and presents some preliminary assessment data based on faculty survey responses. In light of the assessment data, conclusions regarding aspects of the model that appear to further program objectives are discussed. Similarly, aspects that appear to hinder the accomplishment of objectives are also reviewed. Preferred presentation method: Poster

Citation
Format

Walters, J., & DeVreugd, L., & Guessous, L. (2020, June), WIP: Mentoring Early-career Engineering Faculty - A Faculty Development Coordinator Model Paper presented at 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual On line . 10.18260/1-2--35560

TY - CPAPER
AB - This is a Work in Progress Paper. The XX program at YY University (yy) was funded by an NSF ADVANCE Partnerships for Adaptation, Implementation, and Dissemination (PAID) grant between 2011 and 2016. During this time, the XX program worked on several initiatives aimed towards increasing the recruitment, retention, promotion and job satisfaction of women and underrepresented faculty in STEM departments. Shortly after the inception of the program, a climate survey and focus group meetings with faculty showed a strong need for more faculty mentoring. This need was not limited to STEM, women or underrepresented faculty, and was indicative of the lack of formal faculty mentoring programs throughout the university, particularly in STEM departments. While informal and ad-hoc mentoring of early and mid-career STEM faculty was taking place in some instances, a majority of female and male STEM faculty indicated the need for more mentoring, particularly in the area of research. One important goal for the XX leadership team was hence to help encourage a culture of mentorship within the STEM departments so that more senior faculty would get involved and the value of mentorship both to the mentee and to the mentor would be recognized. One model adopted by the School of ZZ at yy involves the use of a Faculty Development Coordinator (FDC) who serves as a point person for untenured (and often tenured) faculty within the School. The FDC follows a “mentor network” model, serving as a facilitator who can connect faculty with others who may be better able to help with a specific issue. The FDC also provides one-on-one mentoring and organizes several group activities. While this faculty mentoring program is still evolving, this paper describes the setup of the FDC mentoring model in the School of ZZ and presents some preliminary assessment data based on faculty survey responses. In light of the assessment data, conclusions regarding aspects of the model that appear to further program objectives are discussed. Similarly, aspects that appear to hinder the accomplishment of objectives are also reviewed.
Preferred presentation method: Poster
AU - Julie Walters
AU - Leanne DeVreugd
AU - Laila Guessous
CY - Virtual On line
DA - 2020/06/22
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - WIP: Mentoring Early-career Engineering Faculty - A Faculty Development Coordinator Model
UR - https://peer.asee.org/35560
DO - 10.18260/1-2--35560
ER -