Faculty life is often described as a balancing act. Teaching, research, service, and personal responsibilities compete for attention, and the instinct for many academics is to grit their teeth and simply push harder. Late nights, working through weekends, and skipping breaks are treated as badges of honor. The message is clear: if you are strong … Read more
At NCFDD, we’ve spent the past 15 years building programs, tools, and resources to support faculty development at every career stage. But one thing we kept hearing from graduate students, new assistant professors, and tenured faculty alike was this: “I feel like I’m doing this alone.” Whether it’s the pressure to publish, the struggle to … Read more
Continuing the Conversation: NCFDD and COACHE on Rethinking Faculty Mentoring Earlier this year, NCFDD and Harvard’s Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) released a joint white paper—Redefining Mentoring in Higher Education—that challenged long-held assumptions about what effective faculty mentoring looks like. Drawing on COACHE survey data and NCFDD field-tested strategies and programs, the … Read more
Faculty mentoring is widely acknowledged as essential to academic success. It supports research productivity, retention, and career advancement, etc. However, many faculty report receiving ineffective mentoring, Why? Because good intentions alone don’t build sustainable mentoring systems. This conversation was at the heart of Rethinking Faculty Mentoring: What Institutions Can Do Differently, a recent webinar co-hosted … Read more
Watch the Recording: Rethinking Faculty Mentoring: What Institutions Can Do Differently Welcome:– Geoff Watson, NCFDD, CEO– Todd Benson, EdD, COACHE Executive Director and Principal Investigator Panelists:– Pearl Dowe, PhD, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor, Emory University– Steve Lee, PhD, Assistant Dean of Inclusion and Principal Facilitator with CIMER, Stanford University Most institutions say they … Read more
Author: NCFDD In higher education, student success is a top priority. Institutions dedicate significant resources to advising, academic support, and student engagement initiatives. But one essential factor often doesn’t get the attention it deserves: faculty. Faculty success isn’t separate from institutional success. It’s the driving force behind it. When faculty are supported—through development opportunities, mentoring, … Read more
Since its inception, the Faculty Success Program (FSP) has supported thousands of academics across disciplines, institutions, and identities as they navigate the demands of scholarly writing, research productivity, and sustainable work-life integration. From assistant professors just beginning their careers to full professors seeking renewed focus, FSP provides a proven structure and community to help faculty … Read more
On many campuses, mentoring is widely valued but loosely defined. It’s often left to individual departments or informal pairings, without much structure or accountability. While many institutions recognize the importance of faculty mentoring, building a coordinated, sustainable approach that works across all career stages remains a challenge. At Emory University, efforts to strengthen mentoring began … Read more
For new and experienced department chairs alike, leadership can feel isolating. You’re expected to manage conflict, mentor faculty, make strategic decisions, and balance countless priorities—often without any formal preparation. That’s exactly why we launched the Department Chair Success Program (CSP). After welcoming our inaugural cohort, one thing became clear: when chairs are supported, everything changes. … Read more
Author: NCFDD Mentoring is widely recognized as essential to faculty success, but not all faculty experience it as effective or equitable. In our recent collaboration with the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE), we took a closer look at national faculty survey data to better understand who’s being supported by current mentoring models—and … Read more