Minutes+from+2_5_09

Attendees: Winston Langley, Ping-Ann Addo, Luis Alonso-Ovalle, Kristy Alster, Oscar Gutierrez, Jean Humez, Kathryn Kogan, Donna Kuizenga, Ellie Kutz, Peter Langer, Mike Novak, Sascha Sheehan, Segie Stefanos, Greg Sun, Lynnell Thomas, Felicia Wilczensky, Amy Blaquiere Provost Winston Langley addressed the committee, laying out his hopes and expectations for our work. We reviewed the charge and the context for our work both at UMB (e.g. the strategic plan), and in relation to the larger world of faculty development, and the need to map both what is currently being done at UMB and what are best practices to consider. We discussed a plan and timetable for this committee’s work—with small work groups feeding into the work of the larger committee. Committee members reflected on their own experience and observations in small groups and then all participants shared their interests, experience, concerns. Finally, Jean Humez, who chaired two consecutive CLA committees on guiding and supporting tenure-track faculty through their pre-tenure years at UMB, reported on the recommendations of those committees, and Donna Kuizenga, CLA dean, described some of the ways in which she followed up on those recommendations. Committee members voiced a number of concerns related to faculty development: ·  Recruiting and retaining faculty with UMB’s heavy teaching load. Overall resources, salary, support. (With additional concerns for international faculty—visas, green cards, transportation.) ·  Addressing the challenge of managing teaching and research, blending the two. ·  Addressing the question of how faculty craft professional lives, how to exploit opportunities. Better information for new faculty about possibilities. ·  Addressing the fact that there is little or no formal support for adjunct/non-tenure-track faculty, only individual, informal, ad-hoc; nothing comparable to the tenure process provides structure, expectations, support. The Faculty/Staff Union has done the most to address needs of adjunct faculty. New faculty adjuncts need orientation. ·  In teaching, creating a focus on student learning outcomes ·  In research, creating a collegial research environment ·  In service, fostering community engagement ·  Formalizing supports that have often been informal (while encouraging informal supports as well) **Mentoring and More**: Several members spoke to the value of mentoring in their own experience. Typically such mentoring took place informally. CLA has moved toward shaping formal expectations for mentoring in departments. Two committees (both chaired by Jean Humez) surveyed junior faculty in CLA, researched best practices, and created two reports concerning tenure track faculty: On Track 1, which offered recommendations and guidance to tenure track faculty, and On Track 2, which offered recommendations to departments for supporting tenure track faculty effectively. (Both documents are posted on the faculty development wiki.) Recommendations to the college and departments included: ·  orienting new faculty ·  being proactive and troubleshooting ·  offering research time, such as a pre-tenure sabbatical providing effective senior mentoring (including how to reduce stress, manage the workload, enjoy life). Some principles for mentoring: o  not one size fits all o  attention to faculty of color o  more than one mentor ·  making the personnel review process transparent. Some outcomes in CLA: The English department created a document setting forth expectations for fourth year review and tenure, negotiated with the dean and the provost. The dean has been working to add CLR’s at critical moments: for a successful 4th year review, for faculty who receive a Healey Grant, and has encouraged new faculty to save their entering CLR’s toward a paid semester without teaching. Prepared by Ellie Kutz
 * Concerns **
 * Some Current Supports and Practices **
 * CIT seminars for pre-tenured faculty, topic-focused seminars for all
 * Mentoring in CLA
 * CLR’s and other resources to support research
 * Workshops for new faculty
 * What this committee might achieve **
 * Bring the power of the whole university to these endeavors
 * Create a structure to support career-span faculty development, university-wide.