A Weekly Planning Template Designed for Faculty: Simple, Practical, and Stress Reducing Create more intentional weeks with a 30-minute ritual that helps you protect writing time, stay focused, and reduce overwhelm. Download Your Free Template What You Will Get A free, ready to use Weekly Planning Template created specifically for the realities of academic life. … Read more
At the beginning of each semester, many faculty set thoughtful goals. Finish a manuscript. Restart a stalled grant proposal. Make visible progress on a long-delayed project. The intentions are sincere, and the stakes feel real. Yet as the weeks pass, those plans often slip beneath the weight of teaching, meetings, service, and daily responsibilities. What … Read more
Author: NCFDD Academic life is often portrayed as collaborative, intellectual, and community driven. In reality, many faculty describe it as isolating from the earliest stages of graduate school through the years leading to tenure. The pressure to perform, the expectation to manage everything independently, and the lack of built-in peer support can make even the … Read more
Author: Rebecca Pope-Ruark I spend a lot of my time teaching faculty and academic leaders about burnout, which the World Health Organization (2019) defines as “a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” It has three characteristics: exhaustion, depersonalization or cynicism toward those you work with, and real or perceived … Read more
Burnout in higher education is widespread and deeply felt. Faculty are teaching, mentoring, researching, and serving their institutions all at once. The workload rarely slows down, and many academics find themselves running on empty long before the semester ends. What was once fulfilling can start to feel like survival. Recognizing burnout is not a sign … Read more
Securing research funding has always required persistence, but for many faculty, the process now feels increasingly solitary and increasingly uncertain. Traditional sources of support, like federal grants, are harder to access. Research offices are overextended. And the work of identifying funders, tailoring proposals, and navigating institutional requirements often falls squarely on individual shoulders. The result? Faculty are … Read more
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
Author: NCFDD As the academic year draws to a close, it is tempting to focus only on the next set of deadlines, the next proposal, or the next project waiting for intention. The culture of higher education often rewards forward motion, yet meaningful progress requires a pause. Reflection is not a luxury. It is a … Read more
Author: NCFDD Ahead of the start of our new Rethinking Your Research Funding course, we’re spotlighting the experts who helped shape the curriculum. Franco Montalto, PhD, is one such contributor, bringing extensive experience working across federal, state, local, and industry-funded projects. Franco is a Professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at … Read more
Author: NCFDD Ahead of the start of our new Rethinking Your Research Funding course, we’re spotlighting the experts who helped shape the curriculum. Sabrina Noel, PhD, RD is one such brilliant mind, who brings years of research and faculty expertise to the course. Sabrina is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health at … Read more