Faculty are the foundation of education and institutions’ greatest asset. Is it enough to only provide new hire training and professional development sessions? Our greatest assets deserve our best effort to grow from novice educators to academic leaders. This session showcases a comprehensive faculty development program from start to finish.
What keeps faculty engaged and continuously growing with an institution? Faculty have many choices. Institutions are competing for faculty not only with other institutions, but in some instances, with industry employment opportunities. Because of this, retaining faculty must be a priority. An institution and its students lose when faculty leave. There is no other way to put it. They take with them their knowledge of the institution, the student population and their specific needs along with their subject matter expertise. Each one of those is extraordinarily valuable. Institutions not only must recruit faculty with the expertise needed for their students' success; they must work to keep those faculty and help them reach their professional goals.
How do we build a support and development system that grows with faculty to keep them engaged and help them realize their full potential throughout their career lifecycle? In order to grow faculty, their career lifecycle and development needs must be considered in totality. What experiences do faculty bring with them? What do we need to provide faculty in order for them to be successful? How do they want to grow their skills and career over time? How do they want to engage in academia and stay relevant in their field? What resources or tools do they need to maintain or grow their credentials? All of these questions must be considered when building a development program for faculty career longevity, development, and retention.
This session will explore the phases, resources, and components of a comprehensive faculty development experience that spans two departments. The comprehensive program takes faculty on an educational journey of their own from new educators through faculty preparing to take on leadership roles within the organization. Each phase of the faculty experience will be discussed in this presentation along with the support programs and resources used to help increase faculty retention, skill development, career progression, and engagement.
Level of Participation:
Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in guided discussions and virtual polls designed to help participants analyze their current practices and encourage further reflection in collaboration with other attendees. Participants will be provided with virtual resources that will help them identify opportunities for additional faculty development offerings at their own institutions.
Session Goals/Objectives:
By attending this session, participants will be better prepared to:
- Identify the phases and components of the faculty career lifecycle
- Explore the professional development opportunities and resources used to support faculty at the unique phases of their career
- Analyze and identify opportunities for expanding faculty support at their own institutions