New+Faculty

Notes from discussion at Fall 2008 New Faculty Luncheon.

** New Faculty Luncheon: ** Feedback on Teaching, Service, and Research **// Attendees: //**// Katherine Gibson, Jack Leonard, Ling Shi, Jean Wiecha, Pam Nadash, Marisol Negron, Carrie Ann Quinn, Yong Shin, Claudia Esposito, Donna DeGennaro; from the Provost’s office: Winston Langley, Kristy Alster, Anita Miller, Oscar Gutierrez, Peter Langer, and Aimee Blaquiere. // The group split into two tables where each table was asked to discuss the areas of Teaching, Service, and Research. Faculty were also given the opportunity to as general questions and to provide suggestions for next year’s new faculty. · Support from CCDE for online courses · Learning Management System (LMS) staff very responsive, helpful, flexible with training sessions · A lot of attention is paid to teaching within the college and departments · Students are eager to learn and come from many different backgrounds · Appreciate the lower course load for first semester/year · Felt the new faculty orientation (the one in August) was very helpful o Lack of similar vocabulary for earlier courses vs. later courses in the same field o Class size for acting courses too big for individual attention; minimum course size would be better if lowered to less than 12 for specialized theater classes o No warning for upcoming faculty benchmarks during the semester o Sometimes classrooms aren’t designed properly; specifically, M-03-204 doesn’t work well because there is no writing space when a screen is used for PowerPoint presentations o Want WISER training that more specifically gets them up and running in the system and knowing what the deadlines are · How can we balance the teaching load along with research grants, etc.? · How does service fit into the tenure process? · Will there eventually be a computer installed in every classroom? · Is there an editing service for grants for ESL speakers within ORSP? · How can a faculty member become involved in interdisciplinary initiatives? <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· How do committees outside of the university fit into the service category? Are outside committees and opportunities weighed differently than those within the university? <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· How does the work that a faculty member has done at a previous university get weighed during tenure? <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Should faculty members opt to take years with them from previous universities when they come to UMass Boston? <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: 'Courier New'; msolist: Ignore;">o Grant proposal writing help <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: 'Courier New'; msolist: Ignore;">o Create a group where people worked on scholarly work together – a writing group <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: 'Courier New'; msolist: Ignore;">o Consistent resources in office and lab spaces across colleges/departments (some didn’t have basics, like a desk in their office) <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: 'Courier New'; msolist: Ignore;">o Benefits needs; one-on-one advice on healthcare plans <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Create a faculty “syllabus” with dates and deadlines that they may not know as a new faculty member, so that when they can plan better for when certain information is due <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Find out the best day of the week to schedule another new faculty luncheon/check-in for the end of the semester (late April) <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Talk to Richard about the editorial assistance provided by ORSP – in reference to the faculty question about editing services for ESL speakers writing grants <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Establish a mentoring system for new faculty within their college, if possible <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msobidifontfamily: Symbol; msolist: Ignore;">· Incorporate suggestions into next year’s New Faculty Orientation and to help guide remaining new faculty development workshops for spring 09
 * Faculty Likes **
 * Faculty Dislikes **
 * Faculty Questions **
 * Faculty Suggestions **
 * Next Steps: **