New Faculty Mentoring Program
New Faculty
"In my first years at UNCG, I was mentored in my department, but this program gave me a better sense of UNCG and made me feel a part of UNCG."
Choosing your Mentor
Your mentor will be a senior faculty member outside your department and possibly outside your School or College. Since the Program is not designed to provide you with direct mentoring in your research area, you will want to consider other compatibility characteristics. You will have the opportunity to meet with all of the Mentors at the Opening Event in a Speed Meet venue. You might want to ask questions about statistical expertise, grant-writing experience and teaching methods. To see a picture of all our current Mentors and Group Facilitators, along with a brief paragraph about them click here. You might want to visit their faculty web pages prior to the Opening Event.
Working with your Mentor
You will meet with your Mentor regularly throughout the academic year. You may choose to meet for coffee or take a walk on campus. During the first semester, your mentor will contact you email or phone to set up your meetings. During the Spring semester, you will be responsible for contacting your mentor to set up meeting times. Setting up a regular time each month may be the easiest way to arrange things, although you may certainly contact your mentor at other times. Your Mentor will be a senior faculty member from a different department and likely a different School or the College. Meetings touch on many mentoring topics, and there are many ways your Mentor can help you. See information about our current Mentors.
Meeting with your Learning Community
You will meet monthly with a Learning Community composed of other new faculty members along with two senior faculty Group Facilitators. The LC's provide a small community of support as well as discussion forums on topics of interest to new faculty, such as academic writing. New faculty participants have found these groups provide wonderful connections outside your department. The LC's meet in 321 McIver Building, which is a cozy space set up as a respite from the whirlwind of campus life. See information about our current Group Facilitators.
$500 Mini-grant Proposals
You have the opportunity to write a short, one-page proposal for $500 to advance your tenure plan. These funds may be used to support your teaching or research. The proposal must indicate how the money will be used and how it will advance your career at UNCG.