The University Faculty Mentoring Network (UFMN) was launched in Fall 2014 under the leadership of its two co-coordinators – Dr. Eri Yasuhara (Dean Emerita, College of Arts & Letters) and Dr. Jean Peacock (Professor Emerita, Psychology, College of Social & Behavioral Sciences.
AY 2014-2015
- Participation in New Faculty Orientation on September 16, 2014
- Mentor Orientation on September 18, 2014
Eleven senior and retired faculty from across campus were recruited in June of 2014 to serve as mentors, on a completely voluntary basis. Faculty who were respected, who would interact well with junior faculty, and who “knew the ropes” were sought. All five colleges were represented in terms of knowledge base, and there is a good balance of gender, ethnicity, retired/active; there is also representation of the LGBT and religious minority communities. Together with the two coordinators, UFMN now has a strong network of thirteen individuals who stand ready to meet with probationary faculty on an as-needed basis, to listen and offer advice on any and all matters related to their professional lives.
The orientation ended with a Reception marking the official launch of the University Faculty Mentoring Network.
AY 2016-2017
UFMN has become well established as an important resource for all faculty at CSUSB. Starting with individual mentoring in the first year, UFMN’s portfolio has now expanded to include active participation in New Faculty Orientation and responsibility for a series of workshops designed to help all faculty, but especially new faculty. UFMN Mentors have been especially active in assisting faculty with their FARs. UFMN Coordinators conduct workshops on FAR preparation and spend much of the Winter Quarter reviewing first-year faculty FARs for their first periodic reviews.
- New Faculty Orientation September 14-15, 2016
- “Campus Resource Manual” contained such items as calendars, course syllabi information, an advising handbook for faculty, list of acronyms, etc.
- “Resource Fair” where representatives of several campus offices (Pfau Library, Office of Community Engagement / Coyote Den, Title IX, Environmental Health and Safety) staffed tables.
- Seven faculty development workshops were offered to enhance the experiences and effectiveness of newly hired faculty.
AY 2017-2018
UFMN Coordinators Dr. Yasuhara & Peacock worked as full partners with Academic Personnel to plan and implement New Faculty Orientation, mounted annual workshop series, and conducted numerous individual mentoring sessions. At the request of the Provost, a series of monthly gatherings for the first-year faculty, called “Lunch with the Provost, Plus” was added. This series was intended to be a year-long continuation of New Faculty Orientation, as well as an opportunity for the Provost to interact regularly with the new faculty.
2017-18 was the final FERP year for Dr. Yasuhara and Peacock as Coordinators of UFMN.
- New Faculty Orientation, September 13-14, 2017
- Seven faculty development workshops