2008 Woodie Awards
RSSFaculty mentors hope to aid new colleagues
Jessica Berkwitz
Issue date: 11/6/07 Section: News
Lehigh students are not the only ones being mentored on campus, thanks to the University Mentoring Committee for new faculty members.
Begun in 2004, the program was developed to create a university-wide system for faculty mentoring and to help plan the new faculty orientation.
More than 20 senior faculty members from all four colleges volunteer to assist new colleagues as they develop their careers.
"Almost every one of 130 plus new faculty members hired over the past 5 years have taken advantage of one or more of the available activities," said Provost Mohamed El-Aasser, who created the committee.
The program aims to create the best environment for faculty to achieve their career objectives from hiring to retirement and beyond, El-Aasser said.
The development of the program reflects a national trend of colleges and universities across the country looking for ways to provide solid foundations for their new faculty.
"Navigating the waters of teaching, research and service, while maintaining a healthy balance with one's personal life can be daunting for a new professor," said Pam Pepper, professor of theater and original chair of the committee.
The committee's goal is to provide support systems and easily accessible resources, Pepper said.
"Our challenge was to identify and develop a program and events beneficial to assistant professors across the four colleges," Pepper said. "We recognized that there are discipline-specific issues facing new professors, but wanted to embrace the commonalities."
The programs include the August orientation for new faculty to learn about Lehigh and its policies, how to network within and outside of Lehigh, workshops on how to become a better and more effective faculty member and how to balance all of these activities against personal and family needs, El-Aasser said.
Social events help introduce new faculty and their partners to living in the Lehigh Valley. These events include dinner and a show at Zoellner Arts Center at the beginning of every year, in addition to one or two other events each semester.
Begun in 2004, the program was developed to create a university-wide system for faculty mentoring and to help plan the new faculty orientation.
More than 20 senior faculty members from all four colleges volunteer to assist new colleagues as they develop their careers.
"Almost every one of 130 plus new faculty members hired over the past 5 years have taken advantage of one or more of the available activities," said Provost Mohamed El-Aasser, who created the committee.
The program aims to create the best environment for faculty to achieve their career objectives from hiring to retirement and beyond, El-Aasser said.
The development of the program reflects a national trend of colleges and universities across the country looking for ways to provide solid foundations for their new faculty.
"Navigating the waters of teaching, research and service, while maintaining a healthy balance with one's personal life can be daunting for a new professor," said Pam Pepper, professor of theater and original chair of the committee.
The committee's goal is to provide support systems and easily accessible resources, Pepper said.
"Our challenge was to identify and develop a program and events beneficial to assistant professors across the four colleges," Pepper said. "We recognized that there are discipline-specific issues facing new professors, but wanted to embrace the commonalities."
The programs include the August orientation for new faculty to learn about Lehigh and its policies, how to network within and outside of Lehigh, workshops on how to become a better and more effective faculty member and how to balance all of these activities against personal and family needs, El-Aasser said.
Social events help introduce new faculty and their partners to living in the Lehigh Valley. These events include dinner and a show at Zoellner Arts Center at the beginning of every year, in addition to one or two other events each semester.
