Welcome to the University of Mississippi! For the 2022-2023 Academic year we have 47 Faculty and Instructors new to teaching at UM. We hope the information below will help ease your transition to the University. You are always welcome to stop by our offices at Hill Hall and learn how we can assist you, or just to visit.
New Faculty Learning Community, 2022-23
Welcome to the 2022-23 New Faculty Learning Community! We are so glad to have you as new colleagues at the University of Mississippi and are committed to your success. The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, Vice-Chancellor for Diversity and Community Engagement, Office of the Provost, and College of Liberal Arts collaborate to support this learning community. Below is a brief overview, goals, and preliminary plan for the 2022-23 New Faculty Learning Community Program. We hope you’ll join us! Please feel free to email Associate Provost Rich Forgette at forgette@olemiss.edu if you have any questions.
Overview
What is a Faculty Learning Community?
A faculty learning community (FLC) is a group of cross-disciplinary faculty engaging in an active, collaborative, semester or year-long program. The goals of the FLC are to enhance faculty development by (1) integrating new faculty into a community of scholars; (2) promoting active-learning teaching approaches, (3) supporting new faculty by introducing them to resources and opportunities, and (4) building a more collaborative University community.
What does a FLC do?
The FLC members participate in social events, speaker events, discussions, and activities that aim to achieve the stated goals of the Program. The NFLC is a great opportunity to meet new colleagues. The NFLC participants have an opportunity to network across the University, discuss concerns or problems related to their transition, and get peer feedback about transitioning to a faculty role.
Goals
The goals of the New Faculty Learning Community are to:
- Create a welcoming place for new faculty to meet each other
- Strengthen diversity and inclusion among all faculty
- Help with new faculty members’ UM transition
- Promote awareness of teaching, research, and faculty support across campus
- Strengthen of basic teaching skills, for example, leading class discussions, testing, and balancing both lecture and active learning
- Investigate and incorporate student engagement to enhance teaching and learning
- Have fun getting to know your new colleagues!
Preliminary Plan
Over the course of the academic year this FLC will gather together about 12 times (once or twice a month during the academic year including some social events). The tentative schedule is below, and the dates and times for the Spring will be discussed by the group. Each session will last 60-75 minutes.
If you’re able to join the Community, we ask that you make as many of these meetings as possible (but at least half). The topics of these sessions will be mixed. About a third of the meetings will orient you to different people, offices, and resources on our campus to help you build a support network outside your department. A second third will be focused discussions around a themes faced by new faculty. Dr. Josh Eyler, Director of Faculty Development, will be leading many of these thematic sessions. The final third of the meetings will be social so we can get to know each other. Below is a preliminary list of meetings; again, the exact dates/times/and locations for the Spring will be finalized later by FLC members.
Fall Schedule – Tentative Times and Topics
Sept. 23 (Friday, 5:30 p.m.) – Happy Hour! McCormicks, Inn at Ole Miss.
Oct. 7 (Friday, 12 p.m.) [Who Are Your Students? A Demographic Description of the UM Student Body]
Oct. 21 (Friday, 12 p.m.) – Meet Provost Wilkin – Strategic Goals of the University, Ventress Conference Room
Nov. 1 (Tuesday, 12 p.m.) – [Historical, Institutional, and Cultural Context of the University of Mississippi]
Nov. 15, (Tuesday, 12 p.m.) Faculty Activity Reports – Documenting your Faculty Development. A Roundtable Discussion led by College of Liberal Arts and Office of the Provost. CME Board Room.
Dec. 2 (Friday 5:30 p.m.) – Happy Hour! TBA
Spring Schedule – Tentative Times & Topics
Jan. 20 (Friday, 5:30) – Welcome Back – Happy Hour! TBA
Jan.31 (Tuesday, 12 pm) [Panel of senior faculty: “What Do You Wish You Knew as a New Faculty Member? How Has My Teaching Changed?]
Feb. 17 (Friday, 12 pm) Supporting your research – A roundtable discussion led by the Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Research
Feb. 28 (Tuesday, 12 p.m.) Supporting Diverse Faculty – A roundtable discussion led by the Office of Vice-Chancellor for Diversity and Community Engagement.
March/Early April – TBA – Ole Miss Baseball Game… TBA. Fingers Crossed and More Info Coming!
April 7 (Friday, 12 pm) [Reflecting on the first year and building reflective practice]
April 28 (Friday, 5:30 pm) – Happy Hour! TBA